Proposed new toilets flushed with cash

Rodney Local Board approved concept designs for new toilets at Omaha Beach, pictured, on September 16 and for Wellsford a year ago.

The building of two new toilet blocks at Wellsford and Omaha looks set to be spared from Covid-19 budget cuts as a result of emergency funding from Auckland Council.

Both new facilities have been earmarked as Risk Adjusted Programme (RAP) projects, as they are high priority and already have budget allocated to them this 2020/21 financial year.

Council community facilities head Julie Pickering said designs for the new toilets should be completed and put out to tender this year, thanks to the RAP funding.

“The RAP allows projects to commence or progress in advance of the expected delivery year. This is to meet expected financial expenditure in the current financial year,” she said.

Although design and consenting progress are at slightly different stages for each project, physical works are scheduled to begin on both toilet block projects by 2022.

“However, if other projects planned for delivery this financial year slip in progress, there may be an opportunity to bring the physical works forward,” she said.

The September Local Board meeting voted to approve the concept design for a seven-toilet block with changing rooms, two urinals, baby changing tables and two showers outside at William Fraser Reserve in Omaha. The new facilities would be on the back edge of the reserve, across the path from the playground and adjoining the lower car park. They would replace the current public toilets and shower at the surf club.

Project leader Peter Bilton told Board members that the precast concrete toilet block may be prone to occasional flooding, but it was the best site available. He said the local surf club and community group had approved the concept and would be kept in the loop over detailed design.

He said the Omaha project’s inclusion in the RAP was subject to the Board approving its inclusion in the community facilities 2021/22 work programme.

The concept design for the long-awaited new Wellsford public toilets, which will replace the dated toilet block at 118 Rodney Street that even Council admits is in poor condition, was approved by the Local Board in September last year.

The budget for Wellsford is just over $1.1 million and almost $950,000 for Omaha.