Dear ‘Ozbers’,
I am seeking an expert opinion (or two) on what the ‘total cost’ might be (in very approximate terms of course) to install a single ‘plumbed-in/normal’ flushing toilet within the confines of a fenced-off/non-public-access community garden in Melbourne. The community garden is used regularly and very productively by various special-needs groups under the very capable supervision of their carers, but its use by such patrons is currently unfortunately severely time-limited by the simple fact that there is no toilet onsite, nor is there a public toilet anywhere near it. The site/fenced-off community garden is already connected to the water and electricity mains, so there would be no (or relatively minimal) problems or associated costs in that regard, and there are various potential locations on the premises (inside the fence) where the building could be situated; if we raised the appropriate funds and the required council approvals to install the toilet were forthcoming.
Importantly, the toilet would primarily be used by people who either rely on wheel-chairs for mobility, or require assistance going to the toilet for reasons relating to their mental capacity. Notably though, such users would always have the option of being assisted by their supervising carer where required; so it needn’t be a ‘fully fledged disabled toilet’ (that terminology sounds bad, sorry about that but I am trying to keep this text as brief as I can). What I mean is, the actual area (floor-space) within the walls around the toilet would need to be big enough to accommodate (‘fit’) the toilet user and their carer, but the toilet would not need to be designed to be able to be ‘autonomously used’ by someone who relied on a wheel-chair/could not stand, like standard ‘disabled toilets’ (again, I apologise for that unfortunate terminology) in publicly accessible places are. This is not a publicly accessible area, as such; I am not alluding to the construction of a ‘public toilet’.
The idea of a ‘composting toilet’ has been considered but was ultimately deemed inappropriate for a few key reasons (which I personally agree with; it is not an appropriate option due to a combination of rather specific circumstances in this situation). Thus, the course of action we would be wisest to take next seems to be to:
Get some RELIABLE/INFORMED idea of the potential costs involved in building a toilet that can be used onsite by a wheelchair-bound or otherwise impaired person with the assistance of their carer.
Approach the council/relevant governing body with that information (and a proposal incorporating us helping to raise that money, if need be).
Acquiring approval for the installation of the toilet, as soon as the funds become available/are raised.
Acquiring those funds from council, or raising them, or a combination of both. Definitely, there would be no point in embarking on this step (raising the money), until step #3 above (acquiring approval to build) had been attained/achieved.
**SO… **, back to my initial question. Is there a kind-hearted expert or two (builder and/or plumber, or combination thereof) who could spare 10 or 20 minutes to consider the above, and contribute their expert opinions on this by way of a few lines of text in this thread? It would be extremely appreciated. Currently we are just met with a council ‘brick-wall/script’ akin to the famous ‘computer says no’ skit every time we raise it, and I think the main reason is that we are not presenting them with a detailed enough proposal. My ‘very ball-park guess’ would be that the cost would be a minimum of $15,000, but I am hoping that it would be below $25,000. Does that sound right, or am I too low there?
Any advice at all from anyone on this issue would be greatly appreciated; particularly anyone with any relevant knowledge/experience. The advice that would be most appreciated though, would be some sort of reasoned estimate from a suitably qualified person (builder/plumber/etc.) as to what it would be likely to actually cost… and/or any further details that I would need to supply/elaborate on before a more accurate estimate could be suggested.
Even if you have nothing to contribute at all, if you have read this message right to the end, thanks for that. It’s about a toilet. Hardly a ‘glamorous’ topic!
Someone else may assist with budget. My may issue would be where the sewer and water supply would be coming from. If there is nothing close by you will blow the costs in getting the services there. Do you have any idea where the existing sewer and if there is water. Water you may be able to get for flushing, but you will need it to clean hands. If no sewer you will probably need septic. Not to say you can't do what you propose, its just that a lot of factors need to be considered. The other thing is getting it approved through council. You could probably manage a portable lieu, but that is not what you are proposing or needing.