No relief for Tokoroa’s dodgy dunnies

Thursday, 5 June 2025

Two months after Tokoroa’s dodgy dunnies were replaced they’re still not offering any relief after multiple problems have delayed their opening for yet another week.

South Waikato deputy mayor Hamish Daine, who first brought attention to the troublesome toilets’ million-dollar repair bill in July 2023, admitted it was “not a good look” but after the public roasting the council received over issues with the original toilets, “I for one want to make sure the same thing does not happen again”.

In March this year, the council decided to replace its architecturally-designed, award-winning, Leith Place toilets because they were “not fit for purpose” with pipes too small for the job, costs being cut, and constant vandalism.

South Waikato deputy mayor Hamish Daine said delays replacing the Leith Place toilets were ‘not a good look’ but did not want the same problems occurring again.

A former councillor said they were “broken from day one” after they were installed during the council’s $4 million Leith Place redevelopment, which opened to the public in December 2019.

Toilet cubicles were also found to be too small and cramped for many users, and were not originally fitted with any ventilation.

Tired of flushing good money after bad, the new toilet block was moved on site in early April but is still surrounded by construction tape and not in use.

Tokoroa’s Leith Place toilets are still in use while the new ones are installed. The council is unsure what it will do with the timber surrounds.

The new toilets, which were built off-site by Portabuild in Matamata, were budgeted to cost $600,000 and would take around five days to install, the council said at the time.

According to a council spokesperson, delays have been caused by the discovery of “localised unsuitable ground beneath the foundation slab, despite a prior geotechnical investigation”.

“This unexpected issue pushed back the readiness of the foundation for casting.

“The situation was further exacerbated by a storm that forced a postponement of the concrete pour, followed by disruptions due to the public holidays.

“These events had a knock-on effect on the construction schedule.”

The spokesperson said the new toilets were functional but were now being delayed by the late installation of a roof which would cover the entrance platform.

“They should be open next week … within the $600,000 budget.”

Daine said the old toilets were still open and in use but had suffered further damage from vandalism again last week.

“I really hope people look after the new ones a lot better,” he said.

“I want to see projects delivered on time, and on budget, but if it's going to be rushed and compromise the integrity of the project, then we don’t want that happening.

“Some people might say they are just excuses but we want to make sure that it's right.”

At this stage the council has not decided what to do with the old toilet surrounds and intends to leave them in place.

“Council is looking into options on using the existing structures for other purposes,” it said.