A 'Firestorm' Issue: Worcester Eyes Restrooms For Homeless

WORCESTER, MA — Worcester city officials say they are working on opening restrooms to serve homeless residents, but are having trouble finding a site in the city that won't cause controversy.

District 4 Councilor Sarai Rivera pressed City Manager Edward Augustus Jr. on the issue at Tuesday's Council meeting. She pledged to continue raising the issue until the city opens some type of new public restroom.

"This is really, really a public health issue, and an issue of human dignity," she said.

Many reliable public restrooms in downtown Worcester — including on the first floor of City Hall and at the main library branch — have been closed for a year due to the pandemic. That's led to unsheltered people using public spaces to go to the bathroom. The Downtown Worcester Business Improvement District (DWBID) has said its "clean team" has been encountering human waste more often recently.

Augustus told Councilors he is actively working on finding a site with potential partners — and that there is some federal money available due to the pandemic for helping the homeless. However, the siting of public restrooms remains "extraordinary controversial," he said.

"I don't want to create firestorm saying what we're looking at," Augustus said. "It's a little bit awkward, I don't want to say more than I can say right now."

There were about 773 people in Worcester County living either in a shelter or unsheltered, according to the 2020 point-in-time homeless count.

Other local cities have opened restrooms for the homeless. Northampton placed porta potties near encampments in the downtown area during the pandemic. Boston maintains a map of public toilets, including some located at fire and police stations.

In the interim, Augustus has ordered the restrooms at Union Station to remain open to the public. St. John's food pantry, 20 Temple St., and the Salvation Army facility along Main Street are also offering restrooms to the homeless.