N$4 million for renovating public toilets at Swakopmund Mole
By Adolf Kaure.
The Swakopmund Municipal Council will start the bidding process for a suitable contractor to renovate the public toilet cubicles at the Mole for an amount of N$4 million.
According to the Chairperson of the Municipal Council’s management committee, Blasius Goraseb, the procurement process will start in July this year. “The bidding process [is] to commence in July 2024 and the construction to follow after the appointment of a suitable contractor,” he said adding that the number of toilets must be increased as part of the same contract.
This comes after proposals by the Aesthetics Committee of the Swakopmund Municipal Council and the National Heritage Council of Namibia. “The Council approved a capital budget of N$4 million for execution of the project in the 2024/2025 financial year,” said Goraseb.
The concept for the renovation was submitted to the Aesthetics Committee and received approval on the 22 September 2023. After approval by the Aesthetics Committee, the concept was forwarded to the Built Heritage Council of Namibia. Approval was obtained from the Built Heritage Council on 7 November 2023.
A detailed design was done during the approval period by the architect and engineering team. The layout and details where assembled and various investigations conducted.
The original intention of the project was not to create a public toilet facility but to repurpose the existing cubicles. However, based on a previous Council resolution, ablution facilities will be added to the existing cubicles.
The installation of a full public toilet has necessitated that services be installed to connect the facility to the mains. Potable water, sewerage, a rising main and an electrical supply line will be installed leading from Kativa Park, over Molenweg Street through the public open space and along the beach to the location of the guard house at the Mole beach.
This will require a small sewage pup station to be installed as a gravity in-line system will not fit into the existing system.
Public toilet facilities at the Mole in Swakopmund need to be repurposed. (Photograph by Adolf Kaure)
