Loo overflow spills into business
The Cambridge Superloo’s closure has forced some of its loyal customers to seek relief among the town’s businesses.
Jutta Mark owns Aly’s Antiques on Victoria St and said that every week, people ask to use the toilet at her shop.
The much-loved Victoria Square Superloo ‘‘semi-closed’’ in November after a report to the Waipa District Council showed falling patronage.
The council left two toilets at the Superloo open and there are other public toilets in town.
However, Mark doesn’t think it’s acceptable. People still ask to use toilets at shops in town, perhaps because the two remaining at the Superloo do not meet demand.
‘‘Why is the council so poor that it can’t afford to keep the toilets open, but it can afford to extend footpaths on Victoria St that don’t need extending?
‘‘The foot traffic there is abysmally low, but the toilets are a basic human need,’’ she said.
She doesn’t feel comfortable letting people use her shop’s toilet, because they have to walk through a storeroom.
‘‘There can be some pretty clever thieves. I have to watch everyone in this shop like a hawk and I store things out the back there,’’ she said.
But she doesn’t feel comfortable turning people away, either, especially if they are elderly or pregnant.
She wanted to know if any other Cambridge businesses had the same issue since the Superloo closed.
The Cambridge Superloo was noted as a ‘‘stand out facility’’ in an AA member survey in January.
Council group manager service delivery Barry Bergin said he could understand why retailers would be uncomfortable allowing people to use their toilets. But he said free toilets are still available at the Superloo site 24 hours a day.
‘‘Like other public toilets in Cambridge, they are regularly cleaned and serviced.
‘‘We anticipated these two toilets would be busier than normal over the Christmas break, so in December we put in a counting mechanism to measure use,’’ he said.
‘‘We’ll be assessing use and seeing where we go from there.’’
The Superloo building would still open for special events in Cambridge when the town is particularly busy. Closing the Superloo building saves ratepayers $69,000 per year, he said.
Motocross riders injured
Two motocross riders have been injured after two separate bike accidents in the North Island on Saturday afternoon. About 12 noon, a 19-year-old man suffered a head injury when he fell from his motocross bike while riding in the settlement of Mangakino. The Rotorua-based BayTrust rescue helicopter was sent to the town, which lies southeast of Hamilton. He was checked over by St John paramedics before being flown to Waikato Hospital for further treatment. On its return from transporting the man to Waikato Hospital, the rescue helicopter was diverted to Pongakawa, where a man was injured during a similar fall. The 30-year-old suffered chest and back injuries after falling from his motocross bike in the eastern Bay of Plenty area.
Stolen vehicle high jinks
Six police units, including the dog squad, chased three teenagers in a stolen car around Huntly on Friday night. The teenagers pulled over on Fisher Road and ran off. However, Senior Sergeant Dean Anderson said the dogs were able to easily track down the trio and all were taken into custody. Though the episode was described in a more colourful manner on the Waikato Road Policing Team’s Instagram page (there are 318 followers, and counting). ‘‘Pursuit, doors open and three running from a stolen car in Huntly. Nek minnit … Three in custody.’’ The photo showed a blue car pulled over to the side, with three doors flung open. Presumably those fleeing police didn’t take time to close them.