Public toilets make a practical difference to people actively enjoying our community spaces such as; foreshore reserve areas and playgrounds. While the Council has no statutory requirement for Council to provide public toilets, public toilet provision supports an active and healthy community as identified in Council’s Community Strategic Plan.

The provision of good quality public toilets is considered an expectation of many residents and visitors to Shellharbour City. This has been regularly reported to Council from various community engagement activities including the recent IRIS Community Survey (2019), the Disability Access and Inclusion Committee, the Open Space and Recreation Needs Study and Strategy (2020) and by feedback delivered to Councillors.

The toilets that are funded to be built this year are located at:

• James Cook Park, Shell Cove
• Boonerah Point, Mt Warrigal
• McDonald Park, Albion Park

Council uses the following principles when considering new or upgraded public toilet facilities:

Safety – Safety is considered in terms of its physical location, lighting, opportunities for concealment and opportunities for casual surveillance. These are commonly referred to as Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) principles.

Performance – Considerations of the comfort, physical condition, service provisions (e.g. sewer connection, water connection etc.) and quality of the facility and its internal fittings.

Accessibility – A measure of how accessible the facility is for people with disabilities, and the compliance of the facility with modern standards.

Demand – Considerations of the user-driven demand of the facility and colocation including sensitivity of the location.

Council is committed to providing public toilets that are of high quality and accessible to all users.

Council has committed to ‘Creating livable and accessible places’ (Disability Access and Inclusion Play 2017-2021), when renewing, upgrading or planning new amenities. This work must comply with the relevant building codes and standards including the National Construction Code and relevant Australian Standards including Design for Access and Mobility standards.

The provision of new and upgraded public toilets incorporates Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED) guidelines and principles. The application of CPTED principles when designing public toilets improves the functionality, safety (actual or perceived) and the overall appearance.

Council has a regular cleaning program for public toilets and aims to keep these spaces clean and well maintained.

The cleaning frequency of public toilets is tailored around user levels, the location of each facility and meeting user derived service standards. At a minimum each facility is regularly cleaned, stocked with toilet paper and include a hand washing provision.

Public toilet facilities in the City are not all locked during evenings. Each location is assessed and reviewed on an as needs basis.

Currently there is one public toilet at the eastern end of Cove Boulevard within the Waterfront shopping precinct. Master planning of the Shell Cove waterfront has included future public amenities to be delivered with the boat harbour foreshore facilities.

It was identified in 2017 that there was a demand for another public toilet in Shell Cove area, following consultation and assessment in 2019, James Cook Park was selected.

Key community feedback revealed that the co-location of facilities is most highly regarded - James Cook Park is a large open space with a variety of recreation and passive facilities including; basketball half court, cricket pitch, soccer goals, picnic shelter, seating, onsite parking, playground and footpaths.

Yes, 3 locations were shortlisted for community feedback and further investigation. These included: Seafarers Reserve, James Cook Park and Seascape Park.

In shortlisting these locations consideration was given to the proximity of these parks to other amenities and the park facilities available at these locations.

The location within James Cook Park is indicated on the below image. Please note that the exact location of the amenities building is subject to minor changes on site pending service locations.

The location for the new amenities building within James Cook Park is close to the basketball court. This location has not changed and is consistent with all information provided through community engagement. The building’s location has recently been incorrectly represented on social media as being in front of the park benches situated directly to the west of Tasman Drive. The actual location is further to the north closer to the basketball court and behind a row of trees to avoid obstruction of views.

Council is currently undertaking a tender process for the construction of the new amenities building and the final design is subject to the outcomes of the tender process.

The tendered scope for the Shell Cove public toilets specifies that at a minimum one accessible compliant and one ambulant compliant toilet is to be included in the facility design.

Additionally, an expression of interest process is being undertaken for artists to create designs that will be used on privacy screening to improve the overall appearance of the facility.

This image provides an approximation of the type of facility expected to be built at James Cook Park noting that the final design is still subject to the tender outcomes.

Council has received prices from builders and suppliers for construction of the James Cook Park toilet facility. It is anticipated that Council will finalise the assessment in March 2020.

Upon acceptance of a successful tender, it is anticipated that construction will commence in late April/May 2020.