City of Saskatoon buying washroom trailer for 24-hour access in core neighbourhoods

The City of Saskatoon is buying a washroom trailer for 24-hour public use that will serve two core neighbourhoods.

On Wednesday, city council approved a $700,000 plan to increase public washroomaccess in Riversdale and Pleasant Hill, starting in June. The city says no washrooms in the neighbourhoods are currently open to the public between 6 p.m. and 8 a.m.

Mayor Charlie Clark said the plan is not ideal, but the need is urgent and a temporary solution is better than doing nothing.

"The organizations that are out there working with people are saying that the conditions out there are changing very fast, even since last summer," Clark said at the meeting. "There are times when we have faced extraordinary situations and we need to make those investments."

The city will buy a used wheel trailer with two toilets, three urinals and two sinks. Contracted staff will operate the trailer 24 hours a day. The city has not finalized the exact location which is intended to be convenient to both neighbourhoodsbut says a community organization offered a site.

The city will also add staff during regular hours at an existing city-owned washroom facility along the riverbank.

The city expects to run the trailer and staff the existing siteuntil Oct.31 this year.

Frontline workers say access to bathrooms and drinking water is dwindling just as more people in the city need it.

Emergency management director Pamela Goulden-McLeod wrote the report recommending the plan and spoke at the council meeting. She said feedback from community groups on the plan was positive.

"This is a significant financial impact for a very short period of time, but there is a critical need in this area and the recommendations are the best options available in the short term," Goulden-McLeod said.