Gateway Center will be the go-to place for a new public restroom in Downtown.
The first of the trailer-like potties was in place as of Thursday morning near the Gateway T station.
Dubbed the Pittsburgh Potty, its installation comes roughly a month after local stakeholders, including the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership and Mayor Ed Gainey announced the initiative, aimed at curbing public urination and defecation.
PDP workers were making last-minutes adjustments Thursday to the rest stop, which includes three toilets. It is expected to open Friday. Another is planned on Smithfield Street near the Smithfield United Church of Christ, according to sources.
Neither Jeremy Waldrup, PDP president and CEO, nor a PDP spokesman could be reached for comment Thursday. A news conference is expected Friday.
The Pittsburgh Potty’s debut in Gateway Center drew mixed responses from passersby Thursday afternoon. One, Steven Hofstetter, a homeless man who watched workers tinker with the restroom, was eager to give it a go.
“I’m going to try to be the first one in there,” he said. “I want to see how the water works. Wash my hands. Might wash my face a little bit.”
In announcing the initiative in August, the PDP and other Downtown stakeholders said the plan was to install as many as three of the restrooms throughout the Golden Triangle as part of a six-month experiment, with the goal to make them permanent.
At the time, officials said that each restroom installed would be open and staffed from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. daily and equipped with running water, heat and air conditioning.
The initiative is being funded through at least $2 million raised by the Allegheny Conference on Community Development to combat issues like crime, safety, open drug dealing, cleanliness and lewd behavior that have been plaguing Downtown.
Public urination and defecation have been a major concern for some time, with many business owners complaining about people doing their business in alleys or right out in the open.
Last year, a study by Point Park University recommended that public restrooms be placed in high-traffic areas such as Market Square, the Cultural District, transit hubs and Mellon Square.
A move to install public restrooms in Columbus has been flush with controversy, with one property owner suing the city, claiming that locating one of the potties near his business will drive away customers.
Some of those who got their first look at the Pittsburgh Potty Thursday didn’t hold back their opinions.
While Mr. Hofstetter was in a hurry to try out what he described as a “the rich peoples’ porta-john,” he worried about how long it will last.
“It’s a good idea, don’t get me wrong, if it works,” he said. “But how are they going to keep the dope pushers out? You know what I mean.”
Mr. Hofstetter said he was kicked out of the spot where he normally sleeps Wednesday when the Pittsburgh Potty was moved into place. While the restroom will be staffed, “what’s the guarantee that somebody ain’t going to break into it” after hours? he asked.
“It’s not a bad idea but I think it’s going to go down the drain,” he said.
The public lavatory will be located just steps from the T station. In a statement, Adam Brandolph, spokesperson for Pittsburgh Regional Transit, said, “Public restrooms are necessities for everyone, including transit users. They should be easy to find, easy to use, safe and comfortable.”
As she stood outside the station Thursday, Mona Strong of Knoxville thought the blue and white painted restroom was a good idea. She said it is not uncommon for people to use the station’s elevator to do their business.
“It’s always urine soaked,” she said, adding the public porta potty represented a “good start” in addressing such issues.
Maria Subotich, a Monroeville resident who was interviewing for a job in Downtown, liked the idea as well. She said she would use the restroom if nature called. “I mean, personally, if I had to, yeah,” she said.
But Summer Brown, a Downtown resident and restaurant worker, isn’t sold on the experiment.
She said customers have to use a code to get into her restaurant’s bathroom because homeless people “like to get high and do drugs in public restrooms.”
But at the same time, the public facility in Gateway Center “is convenient for homeless people, for people who really do need to use the restroom,” she said.
“I just think there are pros and cons to it to be honest. How is the maintenance going to be? When does it get cleaned? Is there sanitary things in there. You have to think about all of that,” she said.
Ms. Brown added such restrooms could be beneficial in curbing public urination and defecation in alleys and other spots in Downtown.
“I’m kind of curious how that’s going to work out, who’s going to use that. It’s almost like a social experiment, you know,” she said.
She doesn’t anticipate using it, though.
“If I have to use a restroom really, really bad, I would rather hold it,” she said.
Sanders Brown, who works at Wood Street Commons in Downtown, sees a need for public potties given the number of people who stop inside the building asking to use the restroom.
And while the outdoor facility might help out homeless people who have no place to go, Mr. Brown said the better solution would be to find them a place to live.
“You think they would spend the money there,” he said.
Mark Belko: mbelko@post-gazette.com
First Published: September 14, 2023, 1:40 p.m.
Updated: September 15, 2023, 1:38 a.m.