San Juan Bautista parkgoers will have to hold it a little longer, as construction of new restrooms at Verutti Park have been delayed.
The decision to delay stems from a Jan. 8 meeting of the San Juan Bautista Planning Commission after residents raised concerns over design of the restrooms and safety of the park, located on San Jose and Second streets.
Though everyone who spoke on the issue agreed it was time to replace the portable bathrooms at Verutti Park with permanent ones, residents requested windows allowing natural light to enter the backside of the facility.
The restrooms would be located on the Second Street side of the park with a mechanical room separating the women’s and men’s restrooms. According to the meeting agenda packet, infrastructure for water and sewer access already exists, so there is no need for construction under the streets.
Commissioner Shirley Brewer said she liked the idea of three windows, one on each room, but was concerned about them being broken or vandalized.
Resident Cara Vonk said she has seen recreational buildings that have windows protected by wire or mesh, and suggested there might be a kind of glass that can be hard to break.
City Manager Michelle LaForge said the current design was modeled after the baseball field bathrooms, and would have an “S” tile roof and stucco walls in white.
Said resident Louise Covert: “I see what goes on, I hear what goes on and I can’t believe it took this long to get this going. I hear such horrible things going on in that porta potty. They try to knock it over. Kids that have nothing to do like to go on that park and destroy things.”
Covert said a trash barrel next to her fence was set on fire and that there is constant firework activity in the park.
“It’s scary what goes on in that park,” Covert said.
Safety concerns led to a discussion on lighting in the park.
LaForge asked Covert to put in a work order about lighting so the city could examine the situation in Vertutti Park.
Commissioner David Medeiros said if the park incentivizes residents to be more active, it will lead to less unlawful activities in the area.
“One of the things that we need to stress is safety and security, and this town needs to be more walkable,” Medeiros said. “If we don’t have lights we can’t walk.”
Commissioners and the public also discussed ways to make the building aesthetically pleasing with planters or a mural on the back wall of the facility.
Resident Jacqueline Morris suggested for Medeiros to work on the mural, but he said it might be a project for a school.
Commission Chairperson Scott Freels said as long as it doesn’t cost a fortune to build the bathrooms, he is on board with the suggestions.
“Let’s not overegineer our bathrooms,” Freels said.
LaForge said there will be an engineer present next time the project is presented to the Planning Commission.
Kiosk bumped
The Planning Commission also decided to delay voting on a wooden kiosk on Third Street until a future meeting because of liability and ADA accessibility concerns.
The proposed kiosk would be used for maps and informational packets related to the Historic Walking Trail. It’s proposed to be located between 313 and 319 Third St.