Toilet upgrade a flush fit for Paihia community project
A $100,000 community project was officially opened last Friday with a sausage sizzle to thank volunteers who created a family-friendly adventure area and led a revamp of the council toilets there.
A $100,000 community-led project in Paihia was officially opened on Friday 13 October with a sausage sizzle to thank the volunteers who helped turn a former carpark into a family-friendly space.
The southern end of Paihia’s main beach has been turned into an adventure area with a large slide, waterfall feature and rock wall. The council brought forward a planned refurbishment of the existing toilet block to tie in with the community-led revamp of the reserve area.
Focus Paihia led the project after receiving a private donation of $100,000. As well as play equipment for children, the area has been decked out with new barbeques, a boardwalk, fencing, nature play areas, new landscaping, and a hillside track has been recovered. The project was supported by more than 100 volunteers, with experts brought in for specialist work as required.
The toilet upgrade, which had been planned for next year, became more than a simple renovation when drainage issues were discovered and some timber joinery needed replacing. Volunteers carried out the revamp, with this work and improvements to the toilet pathway funded by the council.
The toilet building has been repainted, all cisterns and basins have been replaced, new tiling and artwork installed, and drainage issues have been addressed.