Holy Shit! Designing A New Washroom?

Your tax $$$ at work!

Go to Home Depot! The designing is FREE and they will work with you to get a $60-75 rebate from the City of Toronto for the low consumption toilets although you would think that when you look at the antics at Queen's Park they would be installing high consumption toilets to look after the volume of crap generated by the politicos and beauracrats.

Queen's Park is looting the treasury to buy itself some fancy new loos.

Confidential minutes of an April meeting of the Board of Internal Economy, obtained by Sun Media, reveal the legislature will spend $150,000 just on the "design component" of planned renovations to eight washrooms in the north wing of the building.

Building staff have asked for another $400,000 to renovate the two washrooms on the first floor, which have leaky pipes and peeling paint.

There are six more washrooms on three other floors scheduled to be updated in the north wing, although final approvals have yet to be given.

Documents viewed by Sun Media also reveal a $57,500 estimate for the repair of a "leaky" shower in the Speaker's office. The new north wing toilets will feature marble walls, new stalls, wood work restoration and low consumption toilets and sinks.

STATELY BEAUTIES

The estimate includes the $60,000 cost of replacing pipes in the basement.

A recently completed renovation on the first floor in the west wing of Queen's Park turned two ugly duckling public washrooms into stately marble and wood beauties.

An official with the Speaker's Office would not release any cost details.

However, Sun Media has learned the average cost of renovating a pair of his and her washrooms at Queen's Park is about $350,000.

"I know it was a hell of a lot of money," said a source familiar with board discussions. He said the posh toilets were meant to fit with the historical grandeur of the building.

A 1998 renovation of a washroom at Queen's Park, which included marble and solid wood doors, cost $131,000, Sun Media reported. The motion to spend the $150,000 on designing the new project was moved by Liberal MPP Wayne Arthurs and seconded by Attorney General Chris Bentley.

A Conservative and NDP MPP were also present, and Speaker Steve Peters chaired the meeting.

At the same meeting, the board approved $400,000 to upgrade lighting in the Legislative Chamber by "replacing the outdated electrical wiring, ballasts, indicator lights and incandescent bulbs to provide a more energy efficient lighting system."

The board of internal economy, which is comprised of members from all three main political parties, manages the expenses of the provincial parliament building.

Its deliberations and decisions are usually confidential.