MOOSE JAW — Finding accessible washrooms downtown can be difficult for some homeless and low-income residents, while some may disturb businesses looking for such venues, so city council may consider building a standalone facility to alleviate those pressures.
Coun. Heather Eby introduced a motion during the Oct. 21 regular meeting to have city administration prepare a report for the 2025 budget discussions about constructing washrooms in the downtown, along with the costs and the sources of funding to support such a project.
Residents suggested the idea of installing a downtown washroom during a public meeting in late July, although that idea never arrived at council’s table until now, Eby said, apologizing for not bringing the concept sooner.
“It’s really become apparent in these last months that there is definitely a need in the downtown core for public washrooms. Many businesses have got signs up that their washrooms are for patrons only, which I totally understand,” she continued.
“There are people who have abused the privilege of public washrooms, and I do not blame businesses one iota for closing those to anybody who’s not doing business there.”
However, everyone requires a washroom to perform bodily functions, while people who are homeless also require such venues, Eby said. It is likely “absolutely … humiliating” for such residents to do their bodily business outside wherever they can find a spot, while it’s also “absolutely disgusting” for property owners to find that mess and “is very distasteful” for the public.
Eby said she wanted administration to present the next council with options for how this issue could be addressed, pointing out that Saskatoon recently did something similar. However, if she is re-elected, she would not want a “comfort station” standalone building similar to what’s in Crescent Park since that could cause more problems.
“But at the very least, porta potties in some location that would not be an eyesore would be beneficial. This would give some relief to businesses downtown and for people who are in need,” she added. “This is not a pleasant conversation and no one wants to talk about it, but it is something that is happening and we are all aware of it.”
Coun. Crytal Froese said she would be interested in the location options that city administration presented, while she hoped the new council would consult with downtown businesses about it.
She also acknowledged that this issue has burdened some shops and some have hung up signs prohibiting non-paying customers from using bathrooms, although she pointed out that other cities have open public washrooms in the downtown “for obvious reasons.”
There are public washrooms on the main floor of the Moose Jaw Police Service’s headquarters building, but some people may not want to use that venue “for a variety of reasons,” said Coun. Doug Blanc.
Meanwhile, he wondered if the bathrooms on the main floor of city hall were open to the public, to which city administration replied that they were.
“So we do have some, but I’m not opposed to having other options, maybe in other locations to help the people,” Blanc added.
Coun. Kim Robinson said he wanted the report to contain information about the ongoing maintenance costs of a standalone washroom building since, based on reports from other communities, such facilities usually come with problems.
“Sometimes we receive reports that only contain the sunny side, but I want to see the worst-case scenarios,” he added.
Council then voted unanimously to accept the motion.
The inaugural meeting of the new city council is Monday, Nov. 18, while the first regular meeting is Monday, Nov. 25.
