Calgary will be putting washroom attendants in two parks downtown starting this month.
The Downtown Washroom Attendant Pilot Project will launch in Olympic Plaza and Century Gardens on Monday, May 8 and will run until mid-October. The project will report incidents and provide light cleaning and litter pickup daily at both parks from 10 a.m. until 9 p.m., except during ticketed events like festivals and concerts.
Attendants will also have information about community resources to share with the public as needed, according to a Tuesday morning news release.
The project aims to help people navigate resources and create connections between service providers and people in need of services, such as the unhoused.
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The city partnered with Alberta Alliance Who Educate and Advocate Responsibility (AAWEAR) for the pilot. AAWEAR is an advocacy group that campaigns for more harm reduction, peer support and street-level outreach for drug users. The group also aims to offer resources, services and community spaces for drug users.
AAWEAR will hire, supervise and train the washroom attendants, the city said.
The two parks were chosen because of their central location, existing public washrooms, past incidents and data collected from emergency services and other community partners.
“To make downtown a place that fosters connection and brings people together, we must improve the safety of our public spaces,” Mayor Jyoti Gondek said in an emailed statement.
“I’m excited for this pilot project to take shape as these washrooms will be more accessible, clean, and safe for everyone.”
Carmen Hindson, manager of city centre park operations, said public washrooms need to be a welcoming space for everyone and the pilot is modeled after an existing program in Edmonton.
“The City of Edmonton operates a similar program which has been successful at reducing incidents and repair costs for public washrooms. We want to test out if having attendants helps improve user experience of these washrooms,” Hindson said in a statement.
The pilot will be funded partly by the Government of Alberta and is expected to cost up to $600,000. Information about incident trends and feedback will be collected by the city and AAWEAR. Results and potential for sustainable funding and a long-term program will be discussed when the pilot ends in October.
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