* Dr Rhys Davies has emailed the county's chief executive.
A respected retired GP from the town has emailed Denbighshire
County Council’s chief executive telling him straight that the closure of Llangollen’s
public toilets would be a “public relations disaster”.
Dr Rhys Davies was amongst the 100-plus local residents and
businesses who attended this week’s public meeting at the Town Hall called by
Rod Holt to air protests against the proposal by the county council to shed all
its public toilets in a bid to balance its budget.
Dr Davies repeated his assertion – first highlighted by
llanblogger last April - that while the council had no legal duty to provide
public loos it certainly had a moral one, which drew huge applause from the
audience who were angered that no council officers had attended the meeting
despite numerous invitations.
He has now followed that up by writing directly to chief
executive Graham Boase to hammer home the damage which would be caused to our
busy tourist town if the toilets have to go.
Dr Davies, a former chairman of Llangollen International
Musical Eisteddfod, writes: “I write to support the objections to the potential closure
of the public toilets on Market St in Llangollen. I write as a previous GP in
the town and district for 30 years and also as a long term resident.
“A meeting of residents was held on
August 6th in the Town Hall along with the Town Council. DCC had been invited,
but no-one turned up. This was very disappointing for the attendees who had
many questions to ask. The meeting was attended by in excess of 100, all of
whom wanted the toilets to be retained. The Town Council and our local
representatives on DCC , Councillors Edwards and Keddie, will be able to provide
feedback.
“Although DCC doesn’t have a legal
or statutory obligation to provide public conveniences in Llangollen there
certainly is a moral obligation. Public conveniences have been provided here
for many years and they are essential for a tourist town the size of
Llangollen. Although the population of the town is only 3,600, by its very
nature of being a tourist/market town it serves a much bigger population even
within a small radius and of course at weekends and in the summer.
“I would have thought that the
remuneration from the Smithfield car park would more than finance the current
public conveniences. Also, the money received by DCC to reflect the number of
visitors we have to Llangollen should be reinvested in the town and would also
contribute and should not be kept by DCC.
“There are other non-statutory
expenses which could be reduced in place of public conveniences such as
marketing (where less tourism could be expected if conveniences are
closed).
“DCC cannot ‘cherry pick’ what
benefits them the most. Any transfer of estates should go hand in hand. The
toilets and car park should remain as one.
“If the town council were to take
over the running of the conveniences they should receive all the remuneration
mentioned.
“The idea of paying pubs, restaurants,
take-aways, shops etc to allow the public to use their services is a non-starter.
We are not a city centre and there simply aren't enough places in Llangollen to
accommodate people requiring conveniences especially those with disabilities
and wheelchair users. Also, when buses full of tourists arrive, often earlier in the morning, very few places
are open. There is nowhere that could cope with a busload of elderly visitors
needing conveniences. As a result bus companies won't come to Llangollen and so
there will be a significant loss of business and thus tourism. This would be
detrimental to the town’s economy.
“Llangollen International Musical
Eisteddfod has just had its largest festival for years attracting 50.0OO
visitors and such a move by DCC would be a retrograde step.
“Many people, residents and visitors
included, have urinary problems which require frequent toilet visits due to
urinary frequency, urgency and incontinence secondary to numerous urological
causes. We mustn't forget those with
colostomies, ileostomies and urostomies who all need access to suitable
conveniences to manage their condition.
“In a civilised society it is
essential that all are treated with respect and provided with conveniences when
needed. Closure of the public conveniences in Llangollen by DCC as a cost-saving
exercise doesn't make sense, the loss of business to Llangollen would be far
greater along with the loss of respect from residents and visitors, in short it
would be a PR [public relations] disaster!”
