There91Ƶs 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.
91ƵWe have kids from the age of three and four all the way up to teenage years,91Ƶ said Mark Ward, who coached at Layritz from 1988 to 2014. 91ƵA lot of them don91Ƶt bother going to that washroom. They pee in the bushes.91Ƶ
Ward said it isn91Ƶt 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.
91ƵThat septic system in there must have been at least 40 years old, our maintenance guys reckoned, and it had just stopped functioning,91Ƶ said Darrah.
Compounding the situation was the proximity of a nearby grove of Garry oaks.
91Ƶ[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.91Ƶ
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.
91ƵParents can91Ƶt just let their kids walk off to the bathroom,91Ƶ said Nakatsu. 91ƵThey91Ƶre completely invisible to the naked eye from any ballfield. They91Ƶre in behind trees. That91Ƶs the bigger issue than the distance.91Ƶ
While porta-potties have been brought in to the park, she said those aren91Ƶt accessible for people with mobility challenge. And youngsters aren91Ƶt the only ones unable to make the long trek to the Prospect Lake facilities.
91ƵWe saw an older lady walking up to the washrooms that had been existence all those years,91Ƶ Nakatsu recalled. 91ƵShe didn91Ƶt have the time, or didn91Ƶt know to go to Prospect Lake, and she ended up squatting in the bush.91Ƶ
It91Ƶs a situation that91Ƶs unlikely to change, as Darrah said there are no plans to construct a new washroom at Layritz.
91ƵIf we were to try and provide clear sight lines to every single washroom building in every single one of our parks, it91Ƶs just not feasible,91Ƶ he said, adding the district is currently undertaking a washroom strategy for the entire park system.
91ƵProbably washroom buildings are the No. 1 amenity that the public tend to request. But it91Ƶs not feasible to put a washroom in every park,91Ƶ said Darrah, who didn91Ƶt want to put a pricetag on the cost of a new washroom.
91ƵI don91Ƶt even want to guess, because if I give you a number that91Ƶs the number you91Ƶll remember. Let91Ƶs just say they91Ƶre probably more expensive than people think.91Ƶ
Additional ports-potties will be brought in when .