Three public toilets will stay closed because of “significant issues”, according to an update report to councillors, but four are due to reopen at the start of next month.
The update follows controversy over plans by Brighton and Hove City Council to close 18 public toilets in parks and on the seafront.
The council overturned those plans but said that toilets would stay shut at The Level and Prince’s Place, by Pavilion Gardens, in Brighton, and at the car park in Norton Road, Hove.
They would not be able to reopen until continuing problems had been resolved, according to the report to the council’s Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee.
The two Brighton toilets were closed because of damage including “mysterious leaks” affecting the toilets at The Level.
The toilets at The Level have been affected by “significant issues” since July 2021, having opened as part of a £1 million café building in 2013.
It was initially known as the Velo café and operated by the coffee chain Small Batch. It has since gone through various incarnations – as Tomato Dolce and Salato – before becoming The Level Café which ceased trading in 2021.
Drainage problems started during construction of the skate park when the Victorian aquifer was damaged, resulting in flooding.
Work to resolve the problem has included planting trees and installing seven soakaways for water running down from Ditchling Road.
The toilets at Norton Road closed in April last year and still require “significant repairs”, the report said.
Funding to keep public toilets open was agreed at the council’s annual budget meeting last month, along with a further £1.1 million to refurbish existing toilets.
The council now needs to recruit permanent and seasonal staff – and the report said:
“Sites, including the recently refurbished sites, will be reopening, but the dates are dependent on recruitment and the ability to fill the additional posts.
“Seasonal staff are required in the summer due to the longer opening hours. In winter, the shorter opening hours mean each toilet site can be opened, closed and maintained within one shift.
“In the summer months, the longer hours mean two shifts are required to open, clean and maintain each toilet site.”
The council is also recruiting a programme manager for two years to appraise each site and determine the most viable options.
Refurbished toilets due to come back into use next month are
- Dalton’s Bastion, on the lower promenade near the zip wire, in Brighton, which will have more women’s cubicles, family rooms with changing tables and child toilets, and a “Changing Places” toilet in both the men’s and women’s toilets.
- King’s Esplanade, Hove, which will have more women’s cubicles and family rooms in the men’s and women’s toilets.
- Saltdean Undercliff, which will have more cubicles in both the men’s and women’s toilets, family rooms in both facilities and more urinals in the men’s toilets.
- Station Road, Portslade, which will have more women’s cubicles – and changing tables in cubicles in both the men’s and women’s toilets.
The Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee is due to meet at Hove Town Hall at 4pm next Tuesday (14 March). The meeting is scheduled to be webcast on the council’s website.
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