Urinals a possible solution to peeing in public problem

Peeing in public has become a common sight – at shopping centres, along the roadside, near the railway line – literally any open area.

This disgusting habit has prompted Fred Stopforth of Hibberdene to do something about the problem.

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He has developed a prototype for a public urinal and has offered to pay for the first one – all he needs is the go-ahead from Ray Nkonyeni Municipality (RNM) but so far has received no feedback.

He has been in talks with RNM since January 2019 and has had a number of meetings with municipal officials, including a well-received presentation of his proposed project to corporate management in Port Shepstone in August 2019.

Correspondence continued until early March 2020 but to date Mr Stopforth has not received feedback on his proposal.

Mr Stopforth is passionate about the South Coast.

His association with the area started 17 years ago when he purchased land for development in Kelso which he subsequently sold on to someone else who wanted to develop a water theme park.

He then purchased a beachfront house in Sea Park about 13 years ago.

“I sold it because there were too many vagrants getting drunk, peeing and drinking at the beach entrance and throwing their bottles all over the place. It was not the best way to attract holidaymakers.”

But not one to give up, about five years ago, Mr Stopforth purchased a unit on the Hibberdene beachfront where he is faced with similar problems – loiterers, drunks and people in general peeing on the pavements and against shop walls.

On his way to finding a solution to the problem, Mr Stopforth discovered he was not the only person who found that public urination was affecting businesses and the holiday trade.

“Instead of just whining about it, I decided to find a solution which was well-received at meeting after meeting with municipal management and that was where it ended. It is a simple and cost-effective solution for a serious problem,” he said.

His idea is based on public urinals in France, the Netherlands and the United States.

Mr Stopforth explained that during his official municipal meetings, the obvious question ”where are they supposed to pee?” came as a surprise.

“Has nobody ever noticed that there is a peeing problem on the South Coast?” he wondered.

He said the South Coast had great attributes – affordable accommodation, great beaches, fantastic golf courses, motor racing and the Sardine Run, all of which should be attracting droves of holidaymakers which should naturally boost business as well as the coffers of the municipality.

“Instead, we have towns littered with garbage and people peeing against shop walls or in the wide open, in front of holidaymakers walking around with their children,” he said.

Mr Stopforth stressed that the South Coast is dying and holidaymakers are heading north and something needs to be done about it now.

“Arresting perpetrators or fining them will not solve the problem as they still need a place to relieve themselves.”

The Herald contacted RNM for an update on the proposed project.

Senior Manager: Mayoralty and Communications, Simon April acknowledged receipt of an email and said the query had been referred to the relevant head of department.

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