A BLOCK of newly opened toilets in Winchester have been closed following ‘serious vandalism and misuse’ which left them unsafe to keep open.
The toilet pod at River Park, with three unisex toilets including baby changing and accessible facilities, was opened alongside the refurbished play area in June.
But less than three months later, Winchester City Council was forced to shut the loos due to anti-social behaviour.
A council spokesperson said: “Unfortunately the public toilet facilities at River Park were closed on Wednesday (September 13) due to serious vandalism and misuse which meant they were unusable and unsafe to keep open.
READ MORE: Major boost agreed to district's public toilets
“We were left with no choice but to close them while we arranged for specialist cleaning and repair. We expect them to be open again on Monday (September 18).
"We're really disappointed that we had to do this so soon after the toilets were installed. We know how appreciated they are by users of River Park - but safety has to come first."
A notice on each door reads: "Cubicle out of order due to anti-social behaviour. Sorry for the inconvenience."
The closure was enforced the same day that the Cabinet announced an overhaul of around £580,000 to Winchester’s public toilets.
First to be refurbished will be Chesil multi-storey, Worthy Lane and the St Catherine's and South Winchester park and rides.
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