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The Hidden Cost of Closing San Diego’s Public Restrooms

Public restrooms aren’t just a convenience—they’re a lifeline. Yet San Diego is now considering shutting down many of them to cut costs. At first glance, it might seem like a minor issue, something only frequent travelers or parents with young kids would notice. But dig deeper, and the stakes couldn’t be higher.

More Than Just a Bathroom

Public restrooms are an invisible shield against disease. They curb the spread of germs in crowded areas, prevent public defecation crises, and provide urgent relief for those in need. Shutting them down isn’t just about saving money—it’s about risking public health.

San Diego learned this the hard way between 2016 and 2018, when the city faced one of the worst hepatitis A outbreaks in decades. Hundreds fell ill, and lives were lost. The outbreak ravaged people experiencing homelessness, but it didn’t stop there—it spread to health workers and everyday residents. The solution? More sanitation. Handwashing stations, cleaner streets, and extra restrooms became critical in stopping the outbreak. The lesson was clear: clean restrooms save lives.

Where Will People Go?

When public restrooms disappear, people don’t stop needing to use the restroom—they just find other places. And those places come with consequences.

• Nearly one in four unhoused people in San Diego reported having no choice but to relieve themselves in public because restrooms were locked or too far away.
• Disease spreads when human waste contaminates sidewalks, parks, and streets.
• People with Crohn’s disease, severe illnesses, or medical conditions requiring frequent bathroom breaks face dangerous situations when facilities vanish.
• Tourists, drivers in traffic jams, parents with young children, pregnant women, people with disabilities, and outdoor workers all rely on accessible restrooms to function in the city.

Cities that slash restroom access often end up paying far more in the long run. The costs pile up in cleanup efforts, emergency responses, policing, and disease control. The savings from closing restrooms are an illusion—the mess doesn’t disappear.

What Does a World-Class City Look Like?

San Diego wants to be a leader in tourism, innovation, and business. But great cities aren’t defined solely by skyscrapers or stadiums. They’re defined by the systems that protect everyone—especially the most vulnerable.

Instead of closing restrooms, the focus should shift to making them better: ✔ Keeping them clean and well-maintained ✔ Strategically placing them where they’re needed most ✔ Ensuring they’re open when people need them most

This isn’t just about keeping doors open. It’s about remembering that real progress isn’t made by making life harder for people to meet basic needs—it’s made by building systems that quietly protect everyone every single day.

The choice is clear: San Diego can either pay now for sanitation, or pay later in higher costs and avoidable suffering.