Spending a penny could give way to raising hundreds of thousands of pounds if St Albans public toilets are sold off and turned into a residential property.
The building housing the gentlemen’s and women’s toilets in Spicer Street, St Albans is in the heart of the city’s old historic area and is a stone’s throw from the famous cathedral.
Last month councillors discussed what should happen with the loos as well as another public toilet nearby at the picturesque lake in Verulam Park.
In Spicer Street a quick online check of property prices shows the average price of a home in the street to be around £1,030,000.
The saving from closing down the Spicer Street toilets could amount to £11,830 and the sale of the building provide additional revenue.
The idea for the closing of the two sets of toilets has still to go before the full council.
Fighting to keep both loos open is Cllr Annie Brewster, chair of the overview and scrutiny committee who said the toilets in Spicer Street are an important part of the heritage of St Albans.
She said “They are quite unique – Victorian or Edwardian and once you step inside it’s like going back in time.
“They provide a service for the visitors going in and out of the St Albans Cathedral as well as people out enjoying themselves in the area and visiting the pubs. What are council’s for if you can’t provided places for people to park their cars and have a wee.
A council source said any decision to close the loos has still got to be made by the full council and what had been put forward was part of a series of ideas and proposals as to how the council could save money in the future and raise much needed funds.
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