What would it take to design a public pot that does n’t devolve into a den of drugs , graffiti , and a parade of people who free themselves on the floor ? That was the challenge confront the metropolis of Portland , Oregon back in 2006 , when urban center commissioner Randy Leonard decided toinstallsidewalk public lavatory that would fulfil the universe ’s pauperization for alleviation without becoming a blight on the area .
Their result was the Portland Loo . And more than a tenner after the first Loo was installed , it ’s incontrovertibly one of the best approaches to providing facilities that remain neat and free from squalor .
Built by Madden Fabrication , the Loo addresses several of the most common issues face public convenience open to citizens at large . Nothing about the design invite users to linger inside any longer than they need to so as to conduct their byplay . That ’s apparent as soon as you take the air into the Loo and find a can but no sink . The absence of the latter is to prevent people from performing activities like washing apparel or grooming . ( There ’s no mirror , either . ) The only way to clean your hands is to use a spigot ride on the outside .
The Loo also does aside with any sense of secrecy . Bars on the top and bottom permit give law to verify people are adhering to the single - occupancy mandate and not lark about . The measure also allow sound to carry . If you ’re inside , you wo n’t really feel take out from the sidewalk or the passing walker , and it ’s not likely you ’ll be relaxed enough to do much more than what nature require .
to discourage drug economic consumption , the Loo uses a blasphemous light that makes itdifficultto locate veins for endovenous injections .
Vandal wo n’t have much to do with the Loo , either . The coated stainless - brand Earth’s surface resists spray paint and other markings .
The Loo has migrate to otherlocationsaround the country , including Cambridge , Massachusetts ; Galveston , Texas ; and Hoboken , New Jersey . closet have also made it to Australia . The prefabricate units canrun$100,000 , with installation and maintenance toll extra . subsequently this year , Austin , Texas is set todebuttwo Loos sourced from Portland . The city plans to knight them the Waterloos .
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