Politics

LA Flushes Nearly A Million Dollars For Prefab Bathroom In Latest Waste Scandal

Ray Reyes/Unsplash

Los Angeles officials on Thursday installed a nearly $1 million taxpayer-funded, two-stall public restroom, drawing fresh criticism from voters over the high cost of yet another facility.

The Democrat-led city has long struggled to address the scarcity of public restrooms, spending millions in taxpayer funds over the years on various projects with mixed results. The latest addition is a two-stall restroom that includes two drinking fountains, placed at one of the entrances to Runyon Canyon, a popular hiking spot.

According to a Board of Recreation and Park Commissioners report approved in December 2024, the total cost for the restroom is estimated at $961,125.48. The figure includes approximately $260,152 in park fees and $700,972 from deferred maintenance funds.

While some residents welcomed the new facility, others questioned why the price tag was so steep for such a small structure.

“Why did it cost the city a million dollars?” parkgoer Nick Moschetto asked FOX11.

“I thought it was absurd from the start, and now seeing it, it’s even more absurd,” visitor Shira Scott Astrof also told the outlet. “They wheeled in what looks like an extra-large dog house.”

However, others told FOX11 they were fine with the installment as long as the restroom was “monitored and kept nice.”

The battle over the bathroom’s installation has been ongoing since last summer, when the projected cost sparked backlash from some residents. With portable restrooms already available in the park area, critics questioned the need for a permanent facility to serve the roughly 2 million annual visitors, according to FOX11.

In an effort to offer alternatives, a local advocacy group called the Runyon Canyon Guardians said they identified a similar restroom design costing roughly half of the city-approved amount, FOX 11 reported. Runyon Canyon’s latest bathroom installment will not be the last costly project for the city’s public restrooms.

Sometime around 2023, discussions began between the Los Angeles City Council and the Hollywood Partnership after the nonprofit group proposed installing several public bathrooms in the Hollywood area.

That same year, Democratic Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass included $1 million in capital improvement funding for the project in her budget. In February 2024, the Los Angeles City Council unanimously approved allocating $1 million from city funds to support the design and construction of the bathrooms, advancing the proposal.

The funds came from the former Community Redevelopment Agency and Los Angeles Excess Bond Proceeds — taxpayer-funded city money originally allocated in prior budgets and repurposed for this use. In addition to the $1 million secured from the city, the Hollywood Partnership Community Trust obtained an extra $500,000 from the state of California.

The Los Angeles City Council has also faced backlash over its “Pit Stop Program,” which would provide mobile, staffed restrooms for homeless services. The program drew criticism after a 2019 report revealed that each restroom was expected to cost $339,000, costing the city millions.