Chico City Council hopes to solve its restroom issue

Chico’s lack of 24-hour restrooms may have the potential to create a public health issue like the Hepatitis A epidemic that plagued San Diego from 2016 to 2018.

The outbreak killed 20 people, infected nearly 600 and cost the city more than $12 million. It also led to an increased focus on the unsanitary living conditions among San Diego’s homelessness population, specifically the need for available restrooms.

A City Council member, Scott Huber, citing problems created by an absence of 24/7 restrooms, requested for staff to research and report on possible solutions.

Public Works Director Erik Gustafson, presented recommendations during the Feb. 19 City Council meeting.

Gustafson began his report by summarizing a 90-day trial done on City Plaza restrooms in early 2017. The study intended to determine the feasibility of these restrooms being opened for 24 hours a day.

The trial period ended two weeks early because city workers were spending more than three hours every morning cleaning up vandalism from overnight camping.

According to Gustafson, the study revealed that Chico’s restroom facilities are not conducive to being open around the clock.

“That is a pretty large undertaking, from a staff component, to keep them open overnight,” Gustafson said. “We don’t have the capacity nor the resources to pay for overnight monitoring.”

However, the trial period did generate support from downtown businesses for 24-hour restrooms.

A survey done by the Downtown Chico Business Association found that business owners reported less urination and defecation on and around their stores.

Gustafson said the manager of the Starbucks on Broadway street. specifically commented that employees were able focus more on business instead of worrying about vandalism and cleanliness.

Knowing the city’s desire for 24-hour bathrooms options and understanding its inability to keep larger facilities open overnight, Gustafson offered the City Council two recommendations.

The discussion regarding 24-hour bathroom options drew a wide range of opinions from citizens attending the city council meeting.

Chico resident Bill Mash, spoke in favor of 24-hour restroom options and scolded the council for not acting years ago.

“People close to this issue knew opening plaza bathrooms 24/7 would alleviate the defecation problem,” Mash said. “This is simple science guys.”

The council approved both recommendations with a 5-2 vote. Members directed Gustafson to request funding for the upcoming fiscal year which begins July 1.

Richard Muenzer, currently homeless, told the council he did not agree with its decision. He believes the recommendations are a waste of money and wants the city to open current restroom facilities for 24-hour use.

“We don’t have to buy a bathroom,” Muenzer said. “We have bathrooms”.

Steve Breedlove, a Chico native, also did not agree with the high costs of the two recommendations but urged those in power to decide on a solution quickly.

“ This isn’t just alleviating waste to make the Downtown Business Association happy,” Breedlove said. “This is about a basic biological function people cannot avoid.”

Although, portable restrooms may be a quick fix for Chico’s restroom problem, Gustafson sees the Portland Loo as the long-term answer.

The outdoor restroom, created by the city of Portland in 2008, took more than two years to make and cost nearly $250,000. However, 11 years later, there are more than 60 located throughout the United States sold at $90,000 a piece.

The stainless steel restroom, features a unisex toilet, graffiti-proof coating, an exterior handwashing station and is exposed from the top and bottom. The unique steel-grill design helps law enforcement monitor the facility and prevent crime and vandalism. They can also be configured to run on solar power or outfitted with blue lighting, making it hard for heroin addicts to locate veins.

Evan Madden, a sales manager for Portland Loo, said those who see the restroom as expensive are inexperienced on the subject.

“The price is expensive, but it’s only expensive to people who never bought a restroom before or know what other restrooms cost,” Madden said. “The self-cleaning restrooms cost nearly $500,000, and other restroom structures you might find at state parks or rest stops are several hundred thousand. The Loo is a fraction of that and you get more durability.”

The first Portland Loo installed is still being used.

Portland, a city known for dealing with homelessness, is in the process of installing its 19th loo.

However, Madden did clarify that the facility is aimed toward reaching a wide variety of cities.

“I thought bigger cities would be most interested in it but we have populations as low as $5,000 to $10,000,” Madden said.

Although, an advocate for the outdoor restroom, Gustafson accepted the reality of installing any type of 24-hour facility.  

“Does it solve all the problems?” Gustafson said. “No. Does it create sometimes more problems? Of course. There's going to be vandalism and people are going to try illegally stay overnight so the problems are still there, but this eliminates the bulk of them.”