City councillors to get potty-trained

Sault Ste. Marie city council will be learning all about self-cleaning public toilets next week.

Ward 2 Coun. Lisa Vezeau-Allen and her Ward 3 counterpart Angela Caputo will provide a two-seater lesson about free accessible thunderboxes at Monday's council meeting.

The biffy-boosters say we need accessible 24/7 loos in this city and they like some of the self-cleaning models that are popping up across Canada.

Monday's meeting will be live-streamed on SooToday starting at 5 p.m.

As SooToday reported earlier this week, homeless advocates in our community are weighing in on a Sudbury man's human rights complaint over the lack of 24/7 toilets in that city's downtown core.

Here's the resolution Sault city councillors will be debating:

Self-cleaning public toilets

Mover: Coun. L. Vezeau-Allen
Seconder: Coun. A. Caputo

Whereas in our community and many others the populations of those who are homeless or precariously housed have been on the increase, adding pressures on agencies that serve the most vulnerable; and

Whereas the reality of having access to clean and safe toileting facilities has been identified as need across our service agencies; and

Whereas while our city has publicly accessible washrooms at various locations, including: Dennis Street Bus Terminal, GFL Memorial Gardens, Downtown Plaza, Roberta Bondar Pavilion and through our District Social Services at the Community Resource Centre, these facilities are not open or available on a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week basis; and

Whereas the general public and tourists alike also need access to washroom facilities outside regular business hours of public facilities; and

Whereas since 1992 vandal-proof, self-cleaning toilets have been available in Europe; and

Whereas in cities such as Montreal, Valemount B.C. and soon, Waterloo Ontario, have public accessible free self-cleaning toilets

Now therefore be it resolved that staff be requested to research and connect with social services agencies to seek input and plan for possible self-cleaning toilet facilities in our community and provide council with a report, including potential locations, cost and maintenance responsibilities.