Proposed site for pay toilet doesn't sit well

N. Clark Judd

The Riverdale-Kingsbridge area is already flush with amenities, but one of the few things it doesn't have - a public pay toilet - may be coming soon.

Community Board 8 received a letter last week from the city Department of Transportation notifying board members that the agency wants to install a public toilet on Broadway at West 237th Street. It is one of only 20 to be sited throughout the city over the next two years. The first one was put in place with great fanfare at Madison Square Park in January.

The automated toilets, manufactured and maintained by Cemusa, Inc., cost 25 cents to use, have a time limit of 15 minutes and are open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. They are climate-controlled and include a toilet, a wash basin with warm running water and a mirror. The high-tech facilities include an alarm system that goes off after 12 minutes to let the user know the doors will soon open and a 90-second self-cleaning process will begin.

Community leaders are happy to see the Kingsbridge toilet comming down the pipe - but wonder about its placement.

"I'm not fully getting the location, just because I get off the train at 238th Street, so 237th and Broadway is kind of a quiet area," said Community Board 8 Chairman Tony Cassino. "There are some stores there, but it's not exactly the highest foot traffic area, so if there is a need, does that serve the need?"

City Councilman Oliver Koppell was a bit more direct.

"That's nuts," he said of the location. "That makes no sense at all, I mean, 238th is a possibility, although it's hardly the most urgent."

He said DOT had asked him for input, and he had suggested Jerome Avenue and Mosholu Parkway as one possible location and another spot along Fordham Road, just outside his district.

"This is completely out of left field," said Mr. Koppell.

The pay potty will be a topic for consideration at Board 8's joint meeting of the environment and sanitation and transportation committee on Wednesday, May 21, at 7:30 p.m., at the board office, 5676 Riverdale Ave.

This is part of the May 15, 2008 online edition of The Riverdale Press.

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