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City-wide Toilet Strategy

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Project Update, March 31, 2025: Thank you for sharing your experiences and values on access to toilets in New Westminster! We are excited to share the engagement summary report. Click here to read the report.

City staff will now consider input from this community engagement process, as well as research findings, to develop the City-wide Toilet Strategy. The strategy will outline recommendations to address gaps in the availability, safety, maintenance, and dignity of toilet facilities throughout New Westminster. The final strategy will be presented to Council in fall 2025. Please check back here for updates!


Project Update, February 3, 2025: Thank you to everyone who shared their input and participated in the City-wide Toilet Strategy engagement! We received almost 500 responses to our survey!

Online engagement has now concluded, however, there are still a few in-person engagement activities left to be completed. The engagement summary report will be posted here once all activities have concluded. City staff will be working to analyze your experiences accessing toilets in New Westminster and incorporate findings into the strategy.

In the meantime, take a peek at what community members shared about the importance of 24/7 public toilets in our City:


Thinking beyond your own need to access public toilets on a 24/7 basis, and recognizing the diverse needs of our community, how important do you think it is for the City of New Westminster to provide 24/7 access to public toilets?
Pie chart showing survey results on importance levels: Very important 55.3%, Somewhat important 19.5%, Neutral 9.8%, Not very important 9.8%, Not important at all 5.7%.



What is happening?


Access to public toilets is a fundamental human right. It also supports public health and is essential for supporting independence for everyone in our community. The City is developing a City-wide Toilet Strategy that will include recommendations to address gaps in the availability, safety, maintenance, and dignity of toilet facilities throughout New Westminster for all members of the community.



What is the City-wide Toilet Strategy?


The City-wide Toilet Strategy is a new guiding document that will include recommendations to address gaps in the availability, safety, maintenance, and dignity of toilet facilities throughout New Westminster.


The strategy will:

  • provide an overview of the current availability of all public toilets in New Westminster, including their locations, hours of operation, seasonal availability, and accessibility;
  • identify promising practices occurring in other cities related to the provision of public toilets;
  • engage with community members and groups to understand their experiences accessing toilets in New Westminster; and
  • explore potential solutions to enhance access to toilets, including partnerships between the City and businesses and organizations.

The City recognizes that not everyone has the same experience when accessing toilets. The City-wide Toilet Strategy aims to assess and address the needs of all members of the community while considering the distinct experiences of those who may face challenges or barriers when accessing toilets. These include seniors; people living with disabilities; people living with health conditions; families with young children; and people who are unhoused. As part of this engagement, staff are prioritizing working with community-serving organizations and reaching those with identities and experiences listed above with an invitation to join a focus group to understand their experiences when accessing toilets in New Westminster.


For the broader community, feedback and experiences are being collected through an online survey. Please see the “How can I engage?” section below for more details.

Your input will help us:

  • understand current patterns of toilet use in New Westminster,
  • identify neighbourhoods that may need additional facilities or supports to enhance access, such as attendant services, enhanced maintenance, or extended hours of availability,
  • identify or build on strategies and partnerships to address gaps in toilet access, and
  • establish guiding principles that will inform future efforts in providing toilets.


The Citywide Toilet Strategy will align with other previous and current City initiatives that relate to the provision of public toilets, including the Downtown Livability Strategy, the Crises Response Pilot Project, the updated Age Friendly Community Strategy (in progress), and the updated Parks and Recreation Comprehensive Plan (in progress).


The strategy will consider the diverse needs of the community. It will guide the future provision and management of public toilets by providing clear recommendations to address gaps in the availability, safety, maintenance, and dignity of toilet facilities throughout New Westminster.

For more information about the strategy and related City programs, check out our FAQs and the links on the side of this page.


How can I engage?


Public and focused engagement took place January-March, 2025, and included focus groups, workshops, interviews, and an online survey. More than 580 residents and interest holders shared their experiences and insights through the engagement activities. Input will inform recommendations in the City-wide Toilet Strategy.

Project Update, March 31, 2025: Thank you for sharing your experiences and values on access to toilets in New Westminster! We are excited to share the engagement summary report. Click here to read the report.

City staff will now consider input from this community engagement process, as well as research findings, to develop the City-wide Toilet Strategy. The strategy will outline recommendations to address gaps in the availability, safety, maintenance, and dignity of toilet facilities throughout New Westminster. The final strategy will be presented to Council in fall 2025. Please check back here for updates!


Project Update, February 3, 2025: Thank you to everyone who shared their input and participated in the City-wide Toilet Strategy engagement! We received almost 500 responses to our survey!

Online engagement has now concluded, however, there are still a few in-person engagement activities left to be completed. The engagement summary report will be posted here once all activities have concluded. City staff will be working to analyze your experiences accessing toilets in New Westminster and incorporate findings into the strategy.

In the meantime, take a peek at what community members shared about the importance of 24/7 public toilets in our City:


Thinking beyond your own need to access public toilets on a 24/7 basis, and recognizing the diverse needs of our community, how important do you think it is for the City of New Westminster to provide 24/7 access to public toilets?
Pie chart showing survey results on importance levels: Very important 55.3%, Somewhat important 19.5%, Neutral 9.8%, Not very important 9.8%, Not important at all 5.7%.



What is happening?


Access to public toilets is a fundamental human right. It also supports public health and is essential for supporting independence for everyone in our community. The City is developing a City-wide Toilet Strategy that will include recommendations to address gaps in the availability, safety, maintenance, and dignity of toilet facilities throughout New Westminster for all members of the community.



What is the City-wide Toilet Strategy?


The City-wide Toilet Strategy is a new guiding document that will include recommendations to address gaps in the availability, safety, maintenance, and dignity of toilet facilities throughout New Westminster.


The strategy will:

  • provide an overview of the current availability of all public toilets in New Westminster, including their locations, hours of operation, seasonal availability, and accessibility;
  • identify promising practices occurring in other cities related to the provision of public toilets;
  • engage with community members and groups to understand their experiences accessing toilets in New Westminster; and
  • explore potential solutions to enhance access to toilets, including partnerships between the City and businesses and organizations.

The City recognizes that not everyone has the same experience when accessing toilets. The City-wide Toilet Strategy aims to assess and address the needs of all members of the community while considering the distinct experiences of those who may face challenges or barriers when accessing toilets. These include seniors; people living with disabilities; people living with health conditions; families with young children; and people who are unhoused. As part of this engagement, staff are prioritizing working with community-serving organizations and reaching those with identities and experiences listed above with an invitation to join a focus group to understand their experiences when accessing toilets in New Westminster.


For the broader community, feedback and experiences are being collected through an online survey. Please see the “How can I engage?” section below for more details.

Your input will help us:

  • understand current patterns of toilet use in New Westminster,
  • identify neighbourhoods that may need additional facilities or supports to enhance access, such as attendant services, enhanced maintenance, or extended hours of availability,
  • identify or build on strategies and partnerships to address gaps in toilet access, and
  • establish guiding principles that will inform future efforts in providing toilets.


The Citywide Toilet Strategy will align with other previous and current City initiatives that relate to the provision of public toilets, including the Downtown Livability Strategy, the Crises Response Pilot Project, the updated Age Friendly Community Strategy (in progress), and the updated Parks and Recreation Comprehensive Plan (in progress).


The strategy will consider the diverse needs of the community. It will guide the future provision and management of public toilets by providing clear recommendations to address gaps in the availability, safety, maintenance, and dignity of toilet facilities throughout New Westminster.

For more information about the strategy and related City programs, check out our FAQs and the links on the side of this page.


How can I engage?


Public and focused engagement took place January-March, 2025, and included focus groups, workshops, interviews, and an online survey. More than 580 residents and interest holders shared their experiences and insights through the engagement activities. Input will inform recommendations in the City-wide Toilet Strategy.

  • CLOSED: This survey has concluded.

    City-wide Toilet Strategy Survey

    Access to public toilets is a fundamental human right. Access to public toilets also supports public health and is essential for supporting independence for everyone in our community. The City is developing a City-wide Toilet Strategy that will include recommendations to address gaps in the availability, safety, maintenance, and dignity of toilet facilities throughout New Westminster.

    This survey asks about your priorities, preferences and values for toilet access in the City, as well as about your current experiences using and accessing two different types of toilets:

    • Public toilets: toilets that are available to all members of the public, and do not require a purchase or membership in an organization to access them. This includes toilets that are available in City-run buildings, such as parks, recreation centres, and the library. It can also include toilets in non-City run buildings, such as shopping centres, although toilets in these settings are outside of the City’s responsibility to manage.
    • Toilets in private settings: toilets in private buildings such as in businesses or restaurants, where a purchase, access code, or membership might be required to access the toilet.


    The City of New Westminster is only responsible for the provision of public toilets in City-run buildings, such as those in City-operated parks, recreation facilities, and libraries. However, by assessing the availability and accessibility to other public toilets such as ones inside shopping centres that are open to the public in New Westminster and toilets in private settings, we hope to understand gaps in toilet access and explore opportunities to enhance toilet access through partnerships with local organizations and businesses.

    Your input will help us:

    • understand current patterns of toilet use in New Westminster,
    • identify neighbourhoods that may need additional facilities or supports to enhance access, such as attendant services, enhanced maintenance, or extended hours of availability,
    • identify or build on strategies and partnerships to address gaps in toilet access, and
    • establish guiding principles that will inform future efforts in providing toilets.


    The City recognizes that not everyone has the same experience when accessing toilets, and we have identified several target populations who may face distinct challenges or barriers when accessing toilets. These populations include seniors; people living with disabilities; people living with health conditions; families with young children; and people who are unhoused. The results of the survey, other engagement activities, and research will inform recommendations that will be incorporated into the City-wide Toilet Strategy.


    The survey will take approximately 15 minutes to complete and will be open until the end of day on Sunday, February 2, 2025.

    Prefer to complete the survey in a different language? Click the Select Language button at the top right of the page, and choose your language. The survey, page content, and all other feedback tools will be translated.

    We are also happy to offer additional support and options to share your feedback on this project.  Please contact us at engage@newwestcity.ca with requests.

    Share City-wide Toilet Strategy Survey on Facebook Share City-wide Toilet Strategy Survey on Twitter Share City-wide Toilet Strategy Survey on Linkedin Email City-wide Toilet Strategy Survey link
Page last updated: 01 Apr 2025, 04:07 PM