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Councillors back plans to close 1/2 of Exeter's public toilets.

15 of 26 could close.

A public consultation on the proposals was held earlier in the year, and Cllr David Harvey said that the number of responses to the consultation in comparison to others was low, and other than one email from the Green Party, had nothing from residents on it in his inbox.

He said: “It is clear to me this is not a burning issue among the citizens of Exeter. Many of the facilities are well under standard and would need significant expenditure to bring them up to standard, and they are the focus for anti-social behaviour of all shapes and forms. To my mind, some of the public toilets in Exeter bring the city down and many of them need closing.”

Cllr Ollie Pearson said that the council doesn’t have the money to maintain them or rebuild them or make them acceptable to the public of Exeter. He added: “We have to make some tough choices and this is the choice we are making.”

Leader of the council, Cllr Pete Edwards, said the decision was a consequence of the cuts in local government funding from central government and said that unlike some larger cities like Newcastle, there would still be some free public toilets open.

He added: “It will cost a hell of a lot of money to bring them up to standard and the ones at Whipton have been vandalised so many times and cannot keep spending the money to repair them.”

Cllr Andrew Leadbetter, leader of the Conservative Group, said that he appreciated some toilets were getting very low usage, but questioned why toilets that serve shopping areas were being closed.

He said: “Those that are not being used whatsoever, then fair enough to close them, but you should rethink closing those that serve the shopping centres of Heavitree, Topsham, and Whipton.”

A report to the meeting said: “As well as saving money it was recognised that many were built a long time ago and are hidden away, in the wrong location and some are in poor condition. Some sites also attract serious and repeated anti-social behaviour including drug use and are regularly vandalised.

“They fare poorly in comparison to the large number of good quality, publically accessible toilets, provided by our shops, cafes or shopping centres. Consequently some are rarely used for legitimate purposes.

“We have resisted closing public toilets in the past but retaining current numbers is no longer sustainable. Many of our public toilets require significant investment to bring them up an acceptable condition but continued austerity has eroded the resources required to do this.”

The executive, bar Cllr Leadbetter, all voted to close the 15 toilets. No date for when the closures would be implemented was mentioned at the meeting or in the report to the committee.

The decision is set to be ratified at next Tuesday’s full council meeting, and because the savings are factored into the 2019/20 budget, if any alternative proposals were agreed, an equivalent saving in the budget would have to found at that meeting.

The city council currently operates 26 public toilets. Under the proposals, 11 would be retained across the city, mainly in parks, sporting facilities and tourist areas.

Fifteen are proposed to close permanently, including two which were previously closed in 2016 – toilets at the quay and in Guinea Street, near the library.

Recommended for permanent closure:

Cathedral & Quay Car Park (closed in 2016 due to repeated anti-social behaviour), Guinea Street (closed in 2016 due to vandalism, heavy drug use and repeated anti-social behaviour), Blackboy Road, King William Street, Cowick Lane, Ennerdale Way, Hamlin Lane, Higher Cemetery, Buddle Lane, Musgrave Row, Okehampton Street, Fore Street Heavitree, Cowick Street, Fore Street Topsham, Whipton (Pinhoe Road)

Recommended for retention:

Cowick Barton Playing fields, Exeter Quay, Exwick Cemetery (In mess room), Heavitree Park, Honiton P&R, King George V, Matford Park & Ride, St Thomas Park, Topsham Cemetery, Topsham Quay

The report says that 526 people replied to the consultation, with 82 per cent of respondents rating their visit as acceptable.

Only eight per cent of people who replied said they used public toilets daily but 35 per cent said that they used them in the last week, while 56 per cent of people said they had no difficulty using alternative toilet provision in the city.

Toilets in Topsham, Heavitree and Cowick Street could be examined for asset transfer to a community organisation (if one can be found) and the potential for grant funding for renovation examined, but the report states: “They should still be closed while this process is undertaken to achieve the required budget savings.”

Two jobs, currently filled by temporary staff, would be lost if the proposals were agreed, and £60,000 a year would also be saved.

The city surveyor will be asked to look at either divesting the running of the toilets to other organisations, or to explore alternative uses including potential disposal, to achieve best value for the council.

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