Big news today: San Francisco's $1.7 million bathroom finally opened and it ended up costing only about $700,000. What's more, the toilet itself is a prefab unit that was donated by a Nevada company, so the city's net cost clocked in at only $200-300,000.
And it's a good thing it was donated. Nevada is one of 22 states that San Francisco refuses to do business with because of its inadequate abortion and LGBTQ+ policies. However, apparently San Francisco doesn't object so much that it won't accept a gift from Nevada. So everything worked out.
The toilet by itself cost $400,000?
Classy!
Like it's a Trump toilet, and they're letting just anyone use it!
But what's with the two different kinds of water fountain, one is gluten free?
The lower one is for handicapped people in wheelchairs.
Kinds as in on the wall left vs freestanding in right?
This seems crazy. There's a standard automated public toilet design that the French have been using for 30+ years (I used them in Paris when I worked there), and there are several of them in various places in SF. Why wasn't one of those used ? I can't believe these automated buggers cost $1.7m each.
I wrote this comment under Kevin's "Being around nonsmokers is good for you" post but it's kind of relevant here as well.
=-=-=-=-=
re smoking nowadays vs 1974
There's a still shot on IMDB from the 1974 movie "The Conversation" starring Gene Hackman. He's in a public restroom with his surveillance equipment, next to a toilet bowl. On the stall divider are two rolls of toilet paper, one ashtray, and a bottle opener (!). Life was sure different back then.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0071360/mediaviewer/rm2688142336/
And hes lying on the floor!!
😲
The city that knows how!
And here I thought San Francisco wasn’t willing to employ Realpottytic …
This is a terrible post from Kevin and he should know better.
I am in London currently and I am not seeing the horrible homeless population I see on the west coast of the USA.
You know why that is? SOCIAL HOUSING IS AVAILABLE! THE NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE WILL GIVE ANYONE HEALTH SERVICE FOR NO CHARGE!
USA is bad at helping people, yes. And this bathroom is evidence. But the solution is CLEAR. SOCIAL HOUSING AND NATIONAL HEALTH!
Does the NHS offer treatment for ECS? (EXCESSIVE CAPITALISATION SYNDROME)
Meanwhile: https://amp.theguardian.com/society/2024/jan/31/rough-sleeping-in-london-up-to-highest-level-in-a-decade
Sorry but $700K is still WAY too expensive! In much of the US, this toilet is more expensive than buying a single family home.
If one wants trust in government to improve people's lives, this type of very expensive project, for a small output, is destructive in terms of public trust.
I agree the price is too much but I’m not a SF taxpayer so I don’t care. The world would be much nicer if the only opinions that mattered to decision makers were (1) the people actually paying for whatever it is and (2) the people who have to live near whatever it is. Since I’m neither, SF is welcome to install whatever toilets they wish with their own money and under their own voters’ implicit approval at the last election.
Austin - do you really believe that people reading about a $700,000 public toilets (or $1.3 million), even if they did not pay for this particular toilet, are indifferent? I would contend the impact, particularly on public trust/support for governmental action is FAR broader then the tax payer in San Francisco.
SF is probably the world's richest 45 square miles. I know it's highly dysfunctional in myriad ways, but I'll admit to thinking $700K might not be at that unreasonable? I really have no idea of the costs involved.
Okay, so this single stall cost close to a million bucks. What will the cost of keeping it clean and stocked amount to? Because without upkeep, it'll be good for about one day.
I have to mirror the comments here about housing. I'm sorry. A $700,000 public toilet? I'll ignore the fact that the purported actual cost is $1 million above that. People need housing, not this - at least not at this price.
Humans do need public restrooms, though. Here in Beijing there's a dense network of them: clean, functional, in good working order, and located seemingly every 3/4 of a mile or so on major streets throughout the city. I reckon there are several hundred in Beijing proper. They're much larger than this rinky-dink thing SF has put, with separate facilities for ladies and gents.
I am really disappointed in KD and his commenters to this story. He makes it confusing. At one time, the BAT was priced as $1.7 m as a worst case estimate. It came in at around $200,000 or $300,000 depending on the news source. I would not be surprised if it didn’t even cost that much. This is clickbait local BS, that KD normally rants against amplifying nationally. It is not even really news, and there was no journalism done anywhere I could find. Only smirkism in the reports I read.