Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Life

Op-Ed: San Francisco’s Dolores Park open-air urinal called ‘disgusting’

It’s not hard to imagine mom with three children in tow waiting at the streetcar stop just feet away from the open-air urinal trying to explain as men do what they must to relieve themselves. Many local residents are asking themselves why local authorities would approve an open-air toilet facility beside a bus stop in the first place. However, the issue has passed wonderment stage since an attorney representing a group of civic organizations has sent a legal claim letter to the city of San Francisco informing the mayor and city council members it will sue if the Dolores Park pee station isn’t bulldozed within 20 days, according to an AP article published yesterday.
The controversial pee station that allows onlookers to watch as men relieve themselves in plain view of a public streetcar stop is constructed of a short half-circle concrete wall and piece of canvas that leaves occupant(s) exposed to the public . The city did take the liberty of planting a few small shrubs around the facility, however the plants do not obstruct the view. City leaders who approved of the open-air toilet design are now under fire from groups and individuals who say it is a filthy practice and is clearly a bigoted concept since it is not designed for use by women and children. Other opponents go further by suggesting the open-air public urinal is the beginning of a social plague.
“This is more than stunning and disgusting. It’s a human regression of mankind,” said Frank Lee with the Pacific Justice Institute, one of the groups that joined forces in protest. “If this is not stopped, this will become the norm in San Francisco and spread to other cities.”
Brad Dacus, president of Pacific Justice Institute, called it a “new low even for San Francisco.”
“It is also blatantly illegal,” he said. “The city has not even attempted to comply with its own ordinances, much less state or federal law. We intend to hold them accountable. Public urination is bad enough; spending taxpayer money to promote it is indefensible.”
The San Francisco city Attorney’s office was still lying low as of Thursday, refusing to comment. However Sarah Madland, spokesman for San Francisco recreation and parks department, said that so far there have been five emailed complaints about the facility.
Despite complaints, we are talking about San Francisco, and some believe the open-air pee drain is a great idea.
“Honestly, we were ready to go pee anywhere,” San Francisco resident Aaron Cutler told news station KNTV after the urinal was installed. “So any facility is better than none.”
However park user’s tacit approval may not prove to be enough for city leaders to weather the growing stream of criticism directed at them. The facility just opened up last week and opponents are already lawyering up, so the city can expect the relentless drip, drip, dripping of lawsuits to become more than a public nuisance for them.

Written By

You may also like:

Social Media

Wanna buy some ignorance? You’re in luck.

Tech & Science

Under new legislation that passed the House of Representatives last week, TikTok could be banned in the United States.

Life

Platforms like Instagram and Pinterest often suggest travel destinations based on your likes and viewing habits.

Social Media

From vampires and wendigos to killer asteroids, TikTok users are pumping out outlandish end-of-the-world conspiracy theories.