Gothamist: Public Potties Previewed

sexandthecityfan

Thu, 04 Jan 2007 22:52:23 -0500

i think these bathrooms are such a good idea... they give people a place to do their business in a sanitary environment without joining NYSC! Now if they could only apply this concept to the entire city... that would be a miracle... just imagine.... a clean city.... nah

C

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 19:22:43 -0500

holy crap, so i can take a piss, and then proceed to roll a blunt after...all in the warmth of this thing? SWEET!

wside

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 16:48:45 -0500

nothing wrong with hosing off the homeless. this is win-win.

Brightliner

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 16:13:02 -0500

Anyone ever use the public restrooms in Columbus Park in Chinatown? Nasty! But when you gotta go, you gotta go. Actually, the bums may like the hot water spray of the restroom interior. Hey, free shower! Stay another fifteen minutes and you do do the laundry, too.

your sister's gay boyfriend

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 14:18:56 -0500

I actually got stuck in one of the pay-per-shitters when I visited London when I was like 5. I was hopelessly lost and a cop had to get up on top of the toilet to open the door. So yeah, if you want to sneak a peek, there might be an emergency button hidden on the roof.

pugsley

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 13:40:45 -0500

Who wants to sit on a steel seat... and what's the deal with the paper dispenser being located two feet away and behind the customer. A midget reaching for the paper is likely to fall off the seat. After fifteen minutes the doors would pop open to reveal a pantless midget. this thing was devised by diaper wearing designers.

Martha

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 13:31:11 -0500

The New Yorker this week covers this topic. Go to: www.nyrestroom.com for a listing of free pee stops and linked to Google maps. Here's the whole story: http://www.newyorker.com/talk/content/articles/060327ta_talk_seabrook

Hugomania

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 12:35:36 -0500

I hope NYC doesn't install one of their brand new 400 or so cameras in these things...

SalMineo

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 12:28:26 -0500

I can't wait to figure out how to jimmy the doors shut when people are in there (stacking voice and NY Press boxes in front of the door?). A $200 bounty to the first picture of a tourist soaked and rescued by the NYPD after a "horrid ordeal" of being trapped in a public bathroom for two hours.

m

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 12:22:17 -0500

for anyone interested, these are on display at the Brooklyn Army Terminal on 58th st and 1st ave. they built them last month, and have subsequently had photo crews and city officials down here checking them out. they are currently wrapped in blue tarps, but the toilets are part of a larger display that includes a newspaper stand and two bus stops. the newsstands are metal of some type, the bus stops are clear (plexiglass maybe) with room for ads on 3 sides.

your sister's gay boyfriend

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 12:19:55 -0500

I use the Office Depot toilets in a pinch. Though they're a little too open to the public for my taste, and they never have any TP.

Dave H.

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 12:05:56 -0500

There is one in Herald Square that doesn't open 'til you put in your $.50 and supposedly spray cleans after use. Greater adoption of these facilities was nixed a few years ago when the handicapped lobby objected to the lack of universal access, which would make each unit too large for widespread use. I do find that a NYSC membership is a useful way of having bathrooms available around the city. Useful but fiscally wasteful however.

tien

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 11:24:18 -0500

toby, i once used my new york sports club membership in similar fashion. that was perhaps the best feature of the membership.

your sister's gay boyfriend

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 11:17:33 -0500

drunkard - if these self-cleaners are like the ones in London, you have to pay to open the door. And the 15-minute limit and the self-spraying will keep all but the desperate junkies and vagrants out. Then again, what junky or vagrant isn't desperate?

DrunkAtNYU

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 11:09:35 -0500

so wait when no one is in it the door is open? screw paying i'll just go in there to take a leak for free without closing the door. Many people will also go in to shoot up drugs and have sex i imagine as it looks quite spacious, but i hope they drop the 25 cents. And I really don't think 20 is enough for a city as large as nyc

sp

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 11:07:48 -0500

theres one on the north side of Bryant Park, which sometimes has a line outside that rivals the line for Summer Stage or Shakespeare inthe Park...

Papercutninja

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 11:00:53 -0500

Isn't there still an existing public toilet in Herald Square? I could SWEAR i used one there a few years back when i worked in that area. It shot hot water all over the walls and floors after each use and had a big digital clock counting down your remaining time. Not too bad for 50 cents. I know there used to be one down near City Hall, but that's disappeared.

Leo

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 10:59:18 -0500

I am so glad they are going to finally do it in this city. It's just ridiculous that one can't find a public restroom on the street.

Toby

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 10:56:23 -0500

I have used these self cleaning loos in London and they are not bad. Now I am a NYC Transit Museum member which is quite nice, as it means I can go use a nice clean bathroom in Downtown Brooklyn. I am sure other people just museum memberships in the same way, too.

woozies

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 10:49:22 -0500

These are going to be near parks? I guarantee everyone who tries to use these things will be appalled by the smells and sights of used drugs and drug paraphenalia. I'm ashamed thats the first thing I thought of. oh well.

Andrew J. Lederer

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 10:21:15 -0500

'Find a Starbucks or a Barnes and Noble and pretend you are going to buy something.' _______________________________ No pretending necessary at Barnes and Noble. (Kinda makes you glad they put all those independent booksellers out of business now, doesn't it?)

your sister's gay boyfriend

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 10:19:17 -0500

I'm with you threetoes, though your 120-second benchmark seems a tad bit strict. I've had diarrhea attacks that last for 5 minutes or more.

joe

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 10:14:11 -0500

The NYTimes article on it says they are self cleaning. It will also give a warning when there are 3 minutes left.

threetoedsloth

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 10:10:18 -0500

My thinking was just the opposite: what on earth would people be DOING in there for 15 minutes? If you're not in and out of a bathroom in 120 seconds or less, you're doing something wrong! Seems to me that if you give people 15 whole minutes to hang out in the bathroom, these public toilets are always going to be occupied. People will be bringing newspapers in there and they'll never come out, and meanwhile you'll be peeing your pants out in the cold city street.

Rocknrope

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 10:08:33 -0500

Tien, especially if someone just had a Grey's Papaya special - you're talking 20 minutes at the least.

tien

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 10:01:47 -0500

hmm, 15 minutes? is that enough for most people? it would kind of suck if you're doing your business and suddenly the door pops open. you should be able to buy more time (at a premium) from the inside.

Joe

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 10:01:39 -0500

There's a story in this week's New Yorker about, http://www.nyrestroom.com/, a community google mapping projects of restrooms available to the public.

Kojak

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 09:59:36 -0500

That’s the idea with Self Spraying Toilets Pink. Homeless people couldn’t stay inside without getting sprayed continuously by disinfecting water. Hell that’s a good idea on so many levels...

MissPinkKatee

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 09:56:23 -0500

I like the idea, but have a feeling they are going to turn into makeshift homeless shelters.

holding my nose

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 09:51:24 -0500

Design matters? How about "does it work" and "is it going to be clean"? This is another disaster in the making. I predict that when these things aren't closed for maintenance they are going to smell like, well, you know. Find a Starbucks or a Barnes and Noble and pretend you are going to buy something.

Kojak

Thu, 23 Mar 2006 09:51:21 -0500

Will they be like the ones in England that automatically spray the entire inside with water after every use? NY needs something like that. People here are duuurty.