$724,350 Restroom: A Wild Expense That Should Never Have Reached the Agenda

​Spending $724,350. on a simple park restroom is way too much. The idea came before our city council for approval. I suggested our city staff come back to the council with lower-cost options.

Instead, the mayor called for the vote, the expenditure was approved and there went $724,350. I voted no.

The justification for going ahead was that part of the cost was covered by State and federal grants and money from developer fees ( I show that cost breakdown below).

The problem with that thinking is we have a choice on how grant funds and developer money are spent. We must use them wisely, maximize the good we get from them.

A park restroom at a cost of $724,350 was not our only option.

Our City Council had choices on how to use those funds.

We were not locked into using them solely for the restroom. We could have considered alternatives such as, for example, installing a kid's splash pad.

Our city is allowed to use CDBG funds for any number of public improvements that meet CDBG guidelines. There was no requirement to spend all of the $724,350 for the restroom; the Council could have sought lower-cost alternatives.

That is exactly what should have been addressed before the item every reached the Council agenda. During the agenda preparation meeting, when staff presented only one, wildly expensive option, the directive to staff should have been: Seek more options for the Council This is not going on the agenda as is.

The money spent on this restroom could have and should have been spread to cover needs at multiple city parks. A children's splash pad with some of that money sure would have been nice.