Every public toilet block costs ratepayers $21k a year.

City of Ballarat infrastructure and environment director Bridget Wetherall said the council was currently preparing a municipal-wide Public Toilet Strategy which could address issues such as how many facilities should be available at Lake Wendouree.

Already on the interactive map has feedback around the lake stating "more toilets needed around the lake" and "current toilets are too far from here to be useful".

In June 2021, the council closed the Lake Wendouree underground toilets over safety concerns but the block had a controversial history. In February 2023, it was finally agreed by councillors to demolish the site.

With the development of the new strategy, they are two options in place of the existing Lake Wendouree bathrooms.

The first option is to have no toilet amenities as there are two public facilities located less than a kilometre away being at Victoria Park, about 400 metres away and at the Yacht Club, about 650 metres away.

The second alternative considers either refurbishing the current facility which would bear an estimated cost of about $300,000 - $350,000.

The City of Ballarat spent approximately $1.2 million on 57 public toilets in the 2022-23 budget in terms of maintenance, cleaning and renewal.

Any new additions for toilet blocks to the municipality will be costly with public toilet facilities building costs varying.

"The most recently built block in MR Power Park, Sebastopol, costing approximately $180,000 for a three bay toilet," Ms Wetherall said.

"The Public Toilet Strategy will examine the potential for a variety of toilet facilities to meet the diverse needs of residents across the municipality."

The council's municipal-wide strategy is currently open for the first phase of consultation which closes on June 25, available on the City of Ballarat's My Say page.

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