Residents in Bensonhurst’s Milestone Park in Brooklyn have been raising concerns about the lack of restroom facilities. According to a senior surnamed Liao, the park used to have three portable toilets, but they were suddenly removed one or two months ago, making it difficult for hundreds of elderly people who gather there daily to find a restroom. “Now we have to walk to the Chinese supermarket to find a restroom. Many elderly people end up relieving themselves by the trees, affecting the park’s aesthetics,” he said.
Near 18th Avenue and 82nd Street, groups of elderly people occupy various corners of the park, playing cards attentively for hours on end. Those without seats stand by to watch. However, the environmental issues in the park are a cause for concern. Near the border of the park and the residential area, a strong smell of urine can be detected – some people urinate against trees, some relieve themselves near trash cans, resulting in trees being soaked in urine for an extended period, potentially endangering their survival.
Resident Allen Huang, who lives nearby, described the park as a “big restroom”, making him hesitant to visit and opt to take detours whenever he goes out. “Not to mention the level of disgust this brings to the nearby Western residents.”
Mr. Ye, who moved to the area last year, pointed out that the existing portable toilets were too dirty and smelly to use. “Many people are afraid of dirtying their shoes and end up using cardboard boxes from bakeries as mats on the ground to relieve themselves. The person behind then adds another layer of cardboard, but the urine seeps through nonetheless, making it very dirty, smelly, and unhygienic!” he said with a furrowed brow, expressing his dissatisfaction with the filthy conditions. He added that the park staff refuse to clean up, possibly due to the removal of the portable toilets.
At the nearby Giuseppe Garibaldi Playground, just over ten meters away, there used to be public restrooms, but they have been locked for two years and are unusable. Residents suggest that reopening these restrooms would greatly improve the problem of public urination.
Marnee Elias-Pavia, the district manager of Community Board 11, responded yesterday (18th) stating that the restroom at the Giuseppe Garibaldi Playground was closed due to a lack of electricity, and temporary portable toilets were set up. The restroom at the playground requires funding for repairs, which they have included in the capital budget proposal awaiting approval. Furthermore, she promised to contact the Parks Department to understand the reasons for the removal of the portable toilets but had not received a response by the time of press deadline.
The Epoch Times also reached out to the Parks Department and the office of Council Member Alexa Avilés, who oversees the park, but had not received a response by the time of publishing.
An anonymous community resident familiar with the park’s situation pointed out that nearby Seth Low Park faces similar issues. Although there are public restrooms in the park, their opening hours are irregular, and maintenance is subpar, leading many elderly people to urinate among the trees. He once tried to stop an elderly person from public urination, only to receive the response: “I’m in a hurry, but the restroom is too dirty, I don’t want to go in, my shoes will get dirty.”
The Parks Department explained that due to a shortage of staff, each worker is responsible for managing and maintaining multiple parks, resulting in uncertain restroom opening times, sometimes remaining closed for extended periods due to repairs.
In addition to funding issues and a shortage of staff leading to cleanliness problems, some residents believe that the uncivilized behavior of some park users is a key factor. For instance, the women’s restroom is strewn with toilet paper, the men’s restroom is filled with urine, with feces on the toilet seat, making it smelly and dirty, which is unbearable. He added that the park’s facilities were originally in good condition but have been disrupted by individuals monopolizing park tables for gambling, smoking, selling illicit tobacco, and engaging in fights, disrupting the overall order and environment.
A regular visitor to Milestone Park, Mr. Li, said that around 200 elderly people gather at the park every day, creating a lively atmosphere like a market. “Restrooms are absolutely necessary,” he said. He believes that public restrooms should be added, along with five or six elderly fitness equipment and shelters, to attract more people to participate in healthy activities.
Chen Jialing, a member of the Chinatown Third Community Board’s Parks Committee, pointed out that durable sports equipment like ping pong tables and fitness machines have been proven popular at Columbus Park in Chinatown. “Some elderly people use these exercise equipment daily to relax their muscles. Especially the ping pong tables; as soon as the park opens, people are there playing ping pong all day.”
He also mentioned that the cost of building permanent restrooms is extremely high, and the construction period is lengthy. “The budget for repairing a park or building new restrooms can easily reach millions or even tens of millions of dollars, and the city government has cut some budgets this year.”
Some have suggested implementing a fee for restroom use and hiring regular cleaners to prevent unlawful entry and maintain cleanliness.
Legislatively, the bill Intro. 267 proposed in February this year aims to open restrooms in city-owned buildings, but has not been passed yet. In addition, two bills were passed in 2023 and 2022, respectively, requiring inspections of existing public restrooms and planning for new restroom locations.
Mayor Adams announced the “Ur in Luck” plan in June this year, which will build 46 new restrooms in parks across the city, refurbish 36, further alleviating restroom access issues. Currently, the locations and conditions of around 700 public restrooms in New York City parks can be found on Google Maps (https://shorturl.at/H8c0L).