Theresa国际传媒檚 no relief in sight for ballplayers at Layritz Park in Victoria.
Since the washroom facilities at the park were closed a couple years ago, the players using the half-dozen ball diamonds at Layritz have had to make the trek along a trail through the bush to the new washrooms put in at the Prospect Lake soccer pitch.
sa国际传媒淲e have kids from the age of three and four all the way up to teenage years,sa国际传媒� said Mark Ward, who coached at Layritz from 1988 to 2014. sa国际传媒淎 lot of them donsa国际传媒檛 bother going to that washroom. They pee in the bushes.sa国际传媒�
Ward said it isnsa国际传媒檛 so much a question of distance, as the Prospect Lake washrooms are only a couple hundred metres from the diamonds, but more of a safety issue, as the children have to travel along a trail in a wooded area and would be outside the view of their parents.
Gary Darrah, manager of Saanich Parks planning and development, said the washrooms were closed due to concerns with the septic system.
sa国际传媒淭hat septic system in there must have been at least 40 years old, our maintenance guys reckoned, and it had just stopped functioning,sa国际传媒� said Darrah.
Compounding the situation was the proximity of a nearby grove of Garry oaks.
sa国际传媒淸Replacing the septic field] would have meant quite a bit of disturbance, in fact we probably would have lost some Garry oaks. We were reluctant to do that, given that we were working with the Prospect Lake soccer folks on a better alternative.sa国际传媒�
Complicating matters is the , meaning while the Prospect Lake facility is connected to sewer, facilities on the other side of the park are not allowed to hook up to the municipal system.
Shannon Nakatsu, acting president of Layritz Little League, said she has heard an earful from parents and other visitors about the lack of access to washrooms.
sa国际传媒淧arents cansa国际传媒檛 just let their kids walk off to the bathroom,sa国际传媒� said Nakatsu. sa国际传媒淭heysa国际传媒檙e completely invisible to the naked eye from any ballfield. Theysa国际传媒檙e in behind trees. Thatsa国际传媒檚 the bigger issue than the distance.sa国际传媒�
While porta-potties have been brought in to the park, she said those arensa国际传媒檛 accessible for people with mobility challenge. And youngsters arensa国际传媒檛 the only ones unable to make the long trek to the Prospect Lake facilities.
sa国际传媒淲e saw an older lady walking up to the washrooms that had been existence all those years,sa国际传媒� Nakatsu recalled. sa国际传媒淪he didnsa国际传媒檛 have the time, or didnsa国际传媒檛 know to go to Prospect Lake, and she ended up squatting in the bush.sa国际传媒�
Itsa国际传媒檚 a situation thatsa国际传媒檚 unlikely to change, as Darrah said there are no plans to construct a new washroom at Layritz.
sa国际传媒淚f we were to try and provide clear sight lines to every single washroom building in every single one of our parks, itsa国际传媒檚 just not feasible,sa国际传媒� he said, adding the district is currently undertaking a washroom strategy for the entire park system.
sa国际传媒淧robably washroom buildings are the No. 1 amenity that the public tend to request. But itsa国际传媒檚 not feasible to put a washroom in every park,sa国际传媒� said Darrah, who didnsa国际传媒檛 want to put a pricetag on the cost of a new washroom.
sa国际传媒淚 donsa国际传媒檛 even want to guess, because if I give you a number thatsa国际传媒檚 the number yousa国际传媒檒l remember. Letsa国际传媒檚 just say theysa国际传媒檙e probably more expensive than people think.sa国际传媒�
Additional ports-potties will be brought in when .
