Camborne town centre toilets to close by April?
THE town centre public toilets in Camborne are likely to close by April.
Camborne Town Council last week agreed to take over the running of Rosewarne car park and Camborne Recreation Ground public conveniences from Cornwall Council.
But the authority said it could not afford to keep Gurney's Lane toilets open and they are now expected to shut on April 1.
At its full meeting on Thursday night, Camborne town councillors expressed their regret over the matter.
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Councillor David Everett said: "I am disappointed that Cornwall Council has taken this decision. It feels like the gun has been held to our heads. They have given us less than half of the present funding for the three toilets and we can't keep all of them open unless we find a pot of gold from somewhere.
"I know we are living in difficult economic times but how do they expect us to keep all the three toilets open with the allocated funding? I am very sorry but I am very disappointed with what Cornwall Council has offered."
Town clerk Amanda Mugford said the decision, recommended by the authority's amenities committee, was made on financial grounds.
She added: "It was about the short-term service and long-term maintenance costs.
"Given the amount of money we have in our budget, if we were to take over all three toilets it would take nearly all the money we have in the devolved services budget and if anything else came from Cornwall Council we may not be able to take them on.
"A recent letter from Cornwall Council's Cabinet member for transportation, highways and environment, Bert Biscoe, clearly stated that toilets that are not devolved will be at risk of closure. It is not our decision to close them but we have done what we can to make sure there are still public conveniences in the town."
The estimated minimum yearly maintenance cost for Rosewarne car park is £11,000, £7,500 for Camborne Recreation Ground toilets and £20,000 for Gurney's Lane toilets.
A spokesman for Cornwall Council said a final decision will be made at the end of February on the future of those toilets which have not been (or will not be) taken on by town and parish councils.
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