Wilmslow Town Council is currently considering whether they should provide funding of up to £100,00 for the provision of public toilets in The Carrs.
Cheshire East councillors have been working on this project for a number of years and two years ago it was costed at £130,000. The original plans that were put forward have now been revised and scaled down. They are also now proposing that the toilets are cited entirely in The Carrs and do not take up any space in the car park.
However, according to the quantity surveyors estimates, they are still expected to cost between £119,000 and £126,000 - the majority of which would need to come from Wilmslow Town Council.
Cllr Martin Watkins, Chairman of Wilmslow Town Council explained "Some money towards this is going to come from Cheshire East, from 106 monies which have already been set aside, promised. This could account for £30,000 but this is not guaranteed because we can't get Cheshire East to put their hand on their heart and tell us how much money there is.
"We've also asked how much 106 money from Lacey Green is also available for the toilets, as the toilets are actually in Lacey Green even though they are on The Carrs. We're not getting very far with this information either.
"So the bottom line with these toilets is if we wish to progress with this and get them built and opened by Easter next year we may need to commit up to £100,000 towards the cost. At the moment we have got earmarked £65,000. This is a lot of money, almost 50% increase."
Cllr Ruth McNulty pointed out that they need to take into account not just the capital costs but the ongoing maintenance costs which would have to be covered by the Town Council.
She said "This is going to be a long term very costly exercise and I can't help but feeling this is out of all proportion."
The original plans included a kiosk, so the members of staff running the kiosk could be on hand to help manage the toilets and rent from the kiosk would contribute towards the maintenance cost. However, the scaled down plans are for just two disabled toilets.
Cllr Viveene Brooks commented "I do think this is something that is vital. In all of the years that I have found with young children there aren't any facilities nearby and it is a very difficult situation that parents find themselves in when they are down there. Apart from people who walk in The Carrs so to have it restricted to two disabled toilets I don't think would be very satisfactory."
The project would need to be managed by Cheshire East Council.
Cllr Martin Watkins explained "This is going to have to be done by Cheshire East and project managed by Cheshire East because it's their responsibility. The sum of funding may have to come from this Council but it has got to be done by Cheshire East, there is no way out of it. We actually looked at the beginning of this if we could build ourselves for a cheaper price but we're not capable of project managing it."
Town Clerk Matthew Jackson said "The other critical bit of why it's a Cheshire East process is to do with where the 106 money ends up. This £30,000, they cannot hand that money over to another Council they have to manage it themselves so if we don't go that way effectively we automatically lose £30,000 worth of funding."
He added "It does come to down to whether the Town Council is prepared to put its hand in its pocket. When we set our budget we set that budget on the basis of our best guess estimate, that was approximately two thirds of the total cost that we knew of a scheme from two years earlier but when we've gone through the process we've gone through and this building is considerably smaller than the previous one and still the lowest cost we've got is £119,000.
"It could be done cheaper than that but the other thing we've been looking at in the process is being mindful of the location of this toilet block and wanting to blend with the surroundings of The Carrs. We could get the cost down further if we paid less regard to that element of it.
"We're talking about a building which is clad in wood, if it was brick built it would be cheaper than wood. it might not be hugely cheaper but it would be cheaper - it is getting that balance right between a building that is aesthetically in keeping with its surroundings and satisfy what the Council has identified as a need. We wouldn't have put £65,000 aside unless we thought it was important and there was a need for it. It really is a case now of how far we are prepared to push that to deliver what there is clearly a need for."
Cllr Don Glover said "I do think its desirable but it might not be the best use of the money."
Wilmslow Town Council has about two months in order to make a decision. The project will be discussed again at the next Town Council meeting when they hope to have some more information.
Do you think spending up to £126,000 to provide toilets in The Carrs is money well spent? Share your views via the comment box below.
Comments
Here's what readers have had to say so far. Why not add your thoughts below.
Toilets in the "Sinsbury's" car park - CLOSED. Too expensive said CEC
No new toilets please. Too expensive says this tax-payer.
It would seem that CEC maybe pulling your chains councillors.
When the sainsbury car park toilets were shut one of the councillors said residents could ask to use the toilets I any council building. There are public toilets in our llibrary but they have been closes and you have to beg and plead to use them. If you have a child who might make a puddle they may relent.
I recently visited Canada in Toronto they have fantastic well public librarys with study spaces and modern toilets my son commented 'and you don't have to go outside to have a wee'.
Money for toilets? It's simple, use the ones already there. Reopen the public toilets in the library and give the parish hall funds to maintain their toilets to be used during opening hours. Parents may struggle when the hall is not open but there is always waitrose for emergencies that can't be solved with a tinkle behind a bush.
CEC costings are a joke. They have never had to make money, only spend it. And as far as they are concerned there's plenty to go at. Our council tax doesn't increase, but they increase their borrowings and reduce our services.
The more that Wilmslow Town Council can take on, the better off we will be. There should be an unconditional transfer of our money from CEC.
And the sooner the better.
Why aren't the current toilets serviced and kept open. ....???
because its money ... so dont spend my taxes either on this..........
now if it was to be a new development of toilets at Adlington rd.................
As far as NEW toilets near the play park are concerned, I CANNOT understand how they could possibly cost 100k???!!! You can build a whole house for that nowadays (little one, ok!). Who cares if they are made of brick??? Whatever is cheapest, I say!!
A load of breeze blocks, some roofing & partitions, 4 close-coupled toilets & 4 basins - get the plumbing & soil pipes extended from Parish Hall & Bob's your uncle!!! Build them right behind the Parish Hall, so they are not an eye-sore ...SORTED!
PS Vote for Steph Sankey at the next council elections!! LOL LOL
They close toilets in Handforth, Sainsbury's car park and the toilets at Twinnies Bridge, as they say they can't afford to run them.
Yet they are thinking of spending £100,000 on a new facility.
Refurbish and open what we already have,reopen the public toilets in the library. Toilets don't need to be fancy, pay as you use portable units, strategically sited around the town, are all you need. If they are good enough for Paris they are good enough for here.
What kind of people are running this area if they take over 3 years to decide something along the lines of 'should we put toilets in the park'?
That genuinly concerns me.
Maybe The Carrs do deserve their own toilets closer to the play & picnic areas, but people have used the park for many years without them.
Wilmslow lost the rented, automated public toilet at Sparrow Pit (Bank Sq) because of high unit cost per user and people's fear of getting locked in, with hardly a murmer of dissent.
Given the adverse comments to date, perhaps WTC should shelve this proposal until a more cost-effective solution can be found?