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Hamburg's million-dollar toilet is finally closed after just three months!
Hamburg is closing an expensive underground toilet on Gerhart-Hauptmann-Platz after just three months due to massive water damage.
Hamburg's million-dollar toilet is finally closed after just three months!
Another chapter in the history of public toilet facilities has opened in Hamburg, and it is certainly not what the city fathers had hoped for. The high-priced underground toilet on Gerhart-Hauptmann-Platz, which was only reopened in October 2023 after extensive renovation for a whopping 2.08 million euros, will now be finally closed and even filled. The reason? Construction problems and massive water damage have proven to be insurmountable obstacles. World reports that the decision was made to avoid disrupting traffic and retail in the city center.
But the story doesn't just begin now. The toilet should be highlighted as a prestige project in the city, equipped with a modern elevator, a gender-neutral area and a changing table. But the reality was different: After just three months of operation, the facility had to be closed in January 2024 due to massive water damage caused by inadequate sealing of the walls. A report showed that the contracted construction company had not installed a waterproof tub, which of course did not suit the responsible authorities at all.
The consequences of poor planning
The city administration has now decided not to restore the defective toilet facility. Ralf Neubauer, head of the Hamburg-Mitte district office (SPD), confirmed that no possibility of renovation had been found. It is now clear that the defective system has become superfluous and will be replaced in the foreseeable future by the planned above-ground “toilet for all”, which is to be implemented in the city center in the long term. daily news highlights that the cost of the public toilet was significant and is listed in the Federal Taxpayers' Black Book of Tax Waste.
Repairing the defective toilet would also have caused massive disruption to the city center area, which ultimately represents another reason for the closure. Parts of Mönckebergstrasse would have had to be closed for the renovation work, which the city believes should of course be avoided. The Hamburg city cleaning service is now examining claims for recourse against the responsible construction company because the errors obviously cannot be tolerated.
A costly misunderstanding
For Hamburg, this incident represents just another financial setback at a time when the city is already investing in numerous billion-dollar projects, including the new opera building and a planned harbor museum. The Taxpayers' Association is now criticizing the poor planning and the high costs, which probably represent another example of mismanagement for the city. The city is stuck in a constant cycle of high spending and questionable decisions. t online calls the ongoing damage assessment investigations by architectural firms and experts, which have not yet been completed, a worrying sign for those responsible and the city's citizens.
In the hope that the city administration learns from its mistakes, it remains to be seen how the situation surrounding the future toilet on Gerhart-Hauptmann-Platz will continue. However, it is currently clear that this expensive evolution in Hamburg's urban culture has taken a sobering turn.