27 Feb 2023
A year after councillors announced the closure of public toilets in Spicer Street and Verulamium Park, there remain limited options if you want to spend a penny in the city centre.
It was back in February 2022 that SADC’s public realm committee revealed plans to close Verulamium Park Causeway toilets due to continued flooding and redevelop Spicer Street toilets for residential use because usage was apparently low and the facilities old-fashioned.
The decision meant annual savings of £14,220 for Verulamium Causeway and £11,829 for Spicer Street.
The nearest alternative toilets are at Abbey View athletics pavilion [currently under threat of closure], the Roman museum [where admission may soon carry a fee] and Westminster Lodge.
At the time of the announcement Cllr Annie Brewster said: “Our hundred acre, flagship Verulamium Park is one of the jewels in St Albans’ crown. Many people’s earliest childhood memory of the city was a visit to the lake with a grandparent, mine with an elderly aunt.
“The notion of not providing a public convenience, particularly with disabled facilities, at a location Trip Advisor recommends to spend two to three hours is unthinkable.
“Creative thinking should be able to design a higher level facility that will not be impacted by flooding.
“Further, the public lavatories in Spicer Street are spectacular and an important part of the city’s heritage. A visit to them is like stepping right back into a lost era.
“Importantly, they provide a vital service for visitors en route to the Cathedral, Romeland Garden, the Abbey Gateway, Verulamium Park and St Michael’s village.”
Some of the few surviving public toilets are in Drovers Way, St Albans Museum + Gallery, The Maltings Shopping Centre, and at the Civic Centre car park.
Following a public outcry over the decision to close the Verulamium and Spicer Street loos, in September the public realm committee approved a £3,000 budget for a Community Toilet Scheme.
This would encourage restaurants. shops and other businesses to open their toilet facilities to members of the public free of charge, receiving a fee from SADC in return.
Committee vice-chair Cllr Alison Wren said: ” “I am hoping for a good response from our local businesses to the trial.
“Not only will they receive an annual fee, but providing community toilets will enhance their reputation as it is a public-spirited thing to do. It will be greatly appreciated by residents and visitors.
“There will be a cost to our hard-pressed budget for this innovative scheme, but it will be much less than the cost of refurbishing out-of-date facilities or building new ones. We will evaluate the reaction of the public and businesses to the trial before deciding whether to extend the scheme to other areas.”
A 12-month pilot scheme was supposed to be rolled out towards the end of 2022, but so far nothing has materialised.
Questioned about the lack of progress on the scheme, a spokesperson for SADC said: “We are committed to exploring the benefits of a Community Toilets Scheme.
“However, before we can embark on a pilot scheme we need more information about where the best locations would be for our residents and visitors alike.
“We are therefore looking to collect usage data from our existing facilities.
“Once we have examined that data, we will be able to determine if there is enough demand.”
