There is a Public Forum on Tourism Management taking place Monday, April 7 at 6:00 at 75 Calhoun Street. The FSHA Board is in agreement that this is a good time to call attention to the lack of public restroom facilities South of Broad Street and we want to send a letter to the P&C editor and include as many signatures as we can get. Please review the proposed letter below and let us know if we can add your name to the letter.
Thank you!
Letter to the Editor:
On April 7, 2014, there will be a Public Forum on Tourism Management conducted by the Dept. of Planning, Preservation and Sustainability. This is an opportunity for Charleston residents to make their voices heard on a problem that continues to highlight the hypocrisy in the city’s efforts to promote Charleston as a “world class” tourist destination… specifically, the lack of public restroom facilities in the South of Broad Street and White Point Garden areas.
Because of the lack of facilities in the Historic District, people are relieving themselves in White Point Garden, the Fort Sumter House parking lots and the yards of private residences around the Battery. This is unsanitary, illegal, and is disrespectful to visitors coming to this lovely city, as well as to the citizens who live in these areas.
As residents in this area, we have seen it all. This is a public health hazard. There are life safety concerns here. White Point Garden is a public park…. and often there are people with genuine health issues, who are literally on the verge of fainting or collapsing. On a daily basis, we see tourists (young and many quite old, healthy and unhealthy) that are utterly horrified to learn that there are no facilities in this location…. many are literally reduced to tears and humiliation with the fact that they can either choose a tree in the park or just simply squat down on a public sidewalk to relieve themselves. It’s truly mind-boggling that this “world class” tourist city allows this situation to continue.
The city has spent millions in this part of the city demolishing the old bandstand in White Point Garden (which had bathrooms, by the way) and replacing it with another beautiful bandstand (with no bathrooms). The seawall along East Bay St. and Murray Boulevard is currently getting much needed repairs. City crews regularly perform maintenance on the landscaping in White Point Garden and along the Battery to beautify an area that continues to attract people from all over the world. But nobody at City Hall wants to talk about the ugly little problem of bathrooms and the fact that tourists who have to “go” will “go” somewhere with or without a restroom.
The city has addressed the sanitary issue related to the horse and carriages in the Historic District by enforcing a diaper policy and sending sanitation trucks hourly to clean up the waste from the horses. They have also provided dog parks and guidelines regarding dog waste. If the city thinks the horse and dog waste is serious enough to address, then why aren’t they addressing this issue for humans who visit the Historic District area in our city?
It’s time for the City to address this issue. Many other cities have solved this problem and we can too. The meeting is on Monday, April 7 at 6:00, 75 Calhoun Street, 1st Floor School Board Room. Please attend and let your voices be heard.
George Boniface
Beau Clowney
Glenn DeBiasi
Beth Dixon
Joy Jarvis
Residents of Fort Sumter House, 1 King Street
I recommend that the request for permission to use signature names be sent to all owners and residents by e-mail. I fear that a small percentage of concerned people will see the sign-up sheet in the lobby and/or your web posting.
Thanks, Gordon. We have already had some people sign the signup sheet in the lobby and some have telephoned in to ask that their name be included. I plan to send the letter to the P&C editor tonight (Thursday) and let them know that more people may want to add their name(s). Usually the P&C only lets 1 or 2 signatures appear in the paper, but they add a line that indicates how many more people signed the letter. Appreciate the feedback! –Beth
A much needed item that needs addressing. Reviews online regarding the
lack of facilities at the Charleston waterfront will not compare well to other
tourist areas where facilities are provided to welcome the tourists.
Thanks for the feedback, Dean and Bennie. I will add your names to the signature list. –Beth
Our Letter to the Editor was published in a prominent place on the editorial page of the Wednesday, April 2, 2014 edition of the Post & Courier. The P&C editors made some minor revisions before publishing it. There are already several comments posted in response to the letter. If you want to view the article and the responses, here is a link: http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20140402/PC1002/140409913/1025/
On Thursday, April 3, 2014, Channel 5 News interviewed our FSHA President, Glenn DeBiasi, regarding this issue. This news item appeared on the 5:00 News. You can see the video clip here:
http://www.live5news.com/story/25158276/no-bathrooms-on-the-battery-leaves-little-room-to-handle-business#.Uz60G65kb1c.mailto
On Saturday, April 5, 2014, Channel 2 News interviewed our FSHA President, Glenn DeBiasi, regarding this issue. This news report appeared on the 11:00 PM news. You can see the video clip here:
http://www.counton2.com/story/25173180/neighbors-tourists-complain-of-downtown-restroom-shortage#.U0FK9HJVLDw.email
This article “Public restrooms needed downtown” appeared in the Post & Courier on Sunday, April 6, 2014 on page A6:
http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=doc&p_docid=14D03ECD41082130&p_docnum=1
(The link above no longer works, but here is another related article by Brian Hicks (“Restroom demand partially a symptom of too many people downtown”) published on April 7: http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20140409/PC16/140409378/1009/restroom-demand-partially-a-symptom-of-too-many-people-downtown&source=RSS
Here is the Post & Courier article “City gets ready to tackle toughest tourism woes” about the tourism meeting held on April 7, 2014:
http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20140407/PC16/140409477/1006/
The next meeting for this group will be on June 12, 2014.
A few residents observed some incidents here last weekend over a 4-day span. In the first incident, someone got into the building and used it as a bathroom. We believe that the King Street entrance door may not be closing properly in all cases. Residents, please make sure the front door is properly closed when entering or leaving the building. This is a security risk to everyone in the building. Management is aware of this issue and is trying to fix the doors.
For awareness, we think all FSH residents should know about these incidents. If you see similar incidents, please report it to management and/or call the Police at 843-743-7200 to report public urination. Thank you for your attention to this problem.
Below are 5 incident reports by 2 different residents over a 4-day span:
Saturday, April 12, 2014
Saturday afternoon about 5:45pm, Lanwood knocked on my door and asked me to come down and look at what he discovered in the closet under the south stairwell in the back lobby. Someone had used the closet for a bathroom and even left their soiled underwear. It was a huge mess to say the least and was disgusting to clean up. Lanwood initially noticed an odor coming from the area where the carts are and thought, at first, someone had let a dog use the area but then discovered the closet door was opened a little. For the last 2 days, the front door has not been closing properly and tourists have been able to get into the building if residents do not take the time to make sure it closes completely. I had to personally escort a woman from the building on Friday afternoon which is why the sign is up on the front door asking residents to make sure it is shut. Needless to say, the front door needs to be fixed asap.
Saturday, April 12, 2014
When returning to the building around 5:00 Saturday, 2 women were lurking in the South Battery lot, clearly looking for a bathroom. When they saw me get out of the car and move in their direction, they walked out of the lot onto South Battery. Then as I came up the ramp to come inside, I saw them come back into the SB lot.
Sunday, April 13, 2014
Woman desperate to find a restroom asked to use the bathroom in #103 at front entrance on King St. where we were helping a tenant move out. She was allowed to use the bathroom in #103 and was very grateful.
Monday, April 14, 2014
Two women asked to use bathroom again in #103. One was clearly desperate and we allowed her in to use the bathroom in #103. She was in the bathroom for a long time. After she left, it was clear that she had an upset digestive system. She was very appreciative and said she would write a letter to the P&C editor.
Tuesday, April 15, 2014
Young boy and parents rush into front King St entrance obviously looking for bathroom. They see the sign and turn around heading down King St. Resident goes out back loading dock entrance and sees the boy heading into the S Battery parking, clearly in a huge hurry. Resident says ‘this is not a bathroom.’” Father asks “where is a bathroom?” Reply was to go further down King St. or to City Hall. They left in a hurry.
Another Letter to the Editor about this problem (“Stop stalling on needed restrooms”) was published today (5/11/14). It was submitted by Joy Jarvis and can be viewed here: http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20140511/PC1002/140519892/1025/stop-stalling-on-needed-restrooms.