The Palo Alto History Project
Public Restrooms
                                                                                                      
                                                                                     Waverly Street at Hamilton Avenue
Palo Alto Public Restrooms: Lofty Political Debate?

Ok, so maybe its not the stuff of high legislative oration and no, it probably never attracted the lofty words of
Daniel Webster, but for many years public toilets were one of Palo Alto's more, uh, urgent political issues.

Homeless advocates and parents of small children had been pushing for public restrooms downtown and in public
parks since at least the 1980s. But neighbors and council members often worried it would attract the "wrong sort
of people" NIMBYism seemed to arise with every potential location.

In 1994, the debate heated up again when neighbors of Johnson Park complained that basketball players were
using their stairwells for their baser needs. But when other neighbors protested the idea of park facilities, the city
came up with a different plan---take out the basketball hoop.

So what is a small-bladdered Palo Altan to do? Ah, have no fear, the French to the rescue.

Decaux public restrooms, which are operated by coin, self-clean for 55 seconds after each use, and are visited by
maintenance workers twice a day have been installed in cities all over Europe. Perhaps that's why the French are
considered so refined?

But while the new toilets solved much of the problem, the bad news was that you get what you pay for. With a
yearly tab of $61,500 per toilet, the city purchased just two restrooms and installed them at Lytton Plaza (later
moved to the Caltrans station) and at the corner of Hamilton and Waverly. The restrooms cost 50 cents to use, but
tokens are distributed for free to the homeless.

What a relief!
The French know how to do it
Directions for use
Palo Alto Home Page
The map below shows the City Hall area
Political Issues
The restroom stands opposite
the Downtown Palo Alto Post
Office and Wells Fargo
It costs 50 cents to use
Johnson Park, where the
peeing basketballer feud took
place
There is a downtown map on
the outside of the restroom
Downtown West
Palo Alto Memory Bank
Do you have memories or stories
of the new public restrooms ?  
Post them in our memory bank.  
Thanks!
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Sources:
Palo Alto Weekly