Council demolishes disused public toilets on Grand Parade

The disused unit of public toilets on Grand Parade has been demolished “as part of the plans to refurbish the Grand Parade area”, Cork City Council has confirmed.

The facilities, which have been closed for a number of years, had intermittently been out of service since their development in 2008 and had become a drug-use hotspot and a target for vandalism.

Confirming that the unit has now been knocked, city council said the final plans for the area “will be made public in due course”.

Speaking at a council meeting in June prior to being elected as Lord Mayor, Independent councillor Kieran McCarthy described the vacant unit as an “eyesore” which he said added to "the general street clutter" in the area.

“If we’re not using it and if we can’t use it, perhaps the building needs to be taken down," he added.

At the meeting, the council’s director of services for roads and environment operations, David Joyce confirmed that the unit would be removed from the street within two to three months. 

The local authority also recently confirmed that a new public toilet facility on Grand Parade has been opened adjacent to the library, as part of the council’s public toilet policy.

“This facility provides a much-needed accessible toilet and baby changing unit, as well as one unisex toilet.

“The toilets are accessed directly via an entrance on the Grand Parade, which is separate to the main City Library entrance.

“The toilets are supervised at all times, with contactless pay for use in place (50c),” a report stated.