Fight for the right to potty…
Don’t hit me - that was the only family-newspaper-acceptable headline I could think of for this heads-up, straight from Ward 15 (Eglinton-Lawrence) Councillor Howard Moscoe, who also chairs the city’s Licensing and Standards Committee.
Tomorrow (being Thursday July 3) Moscoe is planning on bringing a motion that will literally open doors at large retailers across Toronto. Those doors being the ones leading to washrooms, that the Ontario Building Code demands that large retailers provide for their customers.
Moscoe, one of Toronto Council’s more senior members, has lately been steamed that his favourite pharmacy doesn’t offer any commodal relief for himself and the other seniors that frequent the place.
“I guess they want to sell extra Depends,” he groused.
Earlier this year, he’d been publicly musing that the city should require public washrooms in the big stores, and was delighted to discover that the province had beat the city to it many years ago.
So tomorrow, Moscoe will be trying to amend the city’s property standards bylaws to make it “crystal clear that they have to provide a signed, public washroom.”
Oh, chuckle if you must, strong-bladdered whipper-snappers. But as Moscoe points out, public washrooms are not some silly luxury.
“For people with young children, they absolutely require washrooms. And as for seniors… well as you get into your golden years you have to visit the washroom more frequently. At my age, I never pass a washroom. It’s a fundamental issue of human anatomy - the right to tinkle.”
More on this story as it develops…
3 Comments so far
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i saw this story on Global Local news in Toronto. Believe it or not, this was THE lead story for the hour. The lead story was NOT that the local cops had their first day in court for their crimes. Nope - the lead story was that a lady couldn’t find a washroom to utilize.
And it wasn’t even that. She started with the public washroom at yonge & bloor, and while the camera crew (which was i guess just sitting there for her) waited for her, she came back out and said that it was too filthy. Apparently, moscoe doesn’t have anything to say about that in an interview during this story. Obviously our tax and subway dollars aren’t contributing to cleanliness, but we expect private dollars to pay for people to clean their employee only washroom for the public when our taxes don’t (god only knows where all the dollars go).
there is a lot to consider that he just doesn’t seem to mention or realize or care about. what about security risks - who is going to monitor the washrooms and pay to ensure that stuff isn’t stolen when the washrooms were put in for employee use only in the beginning? most stores will have to shell out big $ to retrofit their washrooms, and as people are aware, big $ are hard to find in the economy right now. what if some pervert decides to put a camera in the washroom? is the city going to ensure that this isn’t going to happen? this opens up all kinds of issues.
In a world full of poverty and problems, how this becomes such a big deal that it leads the news is beyond me. remember - the lady had a washroom to use - just not the way she liked it. they could have done a story on that point, but that doesn’t have any controversy.
By pab on 07.07.08 1:40 pm
I guess Councillor Moscoe is asking private companies to open their washroom doors to the public, since the public TTC washrooms smell of urine when you enter, and some lack toilet paper and hand soap.. It is a system is used to oversee.
I guess we the taxpayers will have to foot the bill for the cleanup of the toilets located in these private companies.
By may on 08.07.08 12:40 pm
Howard, I love you!!!!
By hazel jackson on 08.24.08 10:48 pm
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