MAYLANDS is set to have a second public toilet, next to the Seventh Avenue bridge, following a nine-year fight for one to be built near the town centre.
Bayswater Council voted 8-2 to use the State Government’s $140,000 grant to install a toilet on the corner of Seventh Avenue and Whatley Crescent at last night’s council meeting.
Deputy Mayor Chris Cornish and Cr Elli Petersen-Pik voted against it, as they wanted to lobby the Public Transport Authority (PTA) for a public toilet at the Maylands train station.
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READ NOWHowever, the PTA advised the council it would not permit a toilet be constructed at the station on several occasions.
A wooden sculpture, which was built as part of the bridge replacement project in 2015, will be relocated to the Railway Parade side of the bridge to make way for the toilet.
City officers are seeking approval of the location from Main Roads WA.
The other public toilet is located at Maylands Hall.
Cr Ehrhardt, who worked with Maylands MLA Lisa Baker for a second public toilet, said the location was the best option because a toilet would be “visible but out of the way”.
“This isn’t a toilet just for what I’ve revoltingly seen referred to as ‘undesirables’,” she said.
“Business owners would like to go to their business first thing in the morning and not find somebody had urinated or defecated there because they haven’t had a choice.”
She said a design featuring birds and trees would look nice against the bridge.
Cr Petersen-Pik was concerned about the toilet possibly attracting more social issues and traffic surrounding the location.
“The location is far from ideal, it is on the far side of the town centre and not many people walk there,” he said.
“There are no shops there; I think it would be under-utilised.”
Maylands resident and owner of the former Maylands post office Marie Havilah is redeveloping her property into a wine bar.
She told the council she was disappointed with the lack of consultation with people who would be directly affected by the toilet.
“I’ve got people who will be sitting with beautiful plantar boxes and umbrellas at the front and they will be looking at people going in and out of the toilet,” she said.