New "Portland Loo" public washroom built at Coopers' Park in False Creek

"Portland Loo" public washroom completed at Coopers' Park on the northeast False Creek seawall. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

The Vancouver Park Board has just accomplished its second Portland Loo installation.

The new single-stall washroom is impossible to miss on the northeast False Creek seawall at Coopers’ Park — located immediately east of the Cambie Street Bridge, next to the basketball court under the bridge.

The Portland Loo is a prefabricated, modular, standalone washroom structure originally designed by the City of Portland, now marketed and sold by an Oregon company under license from the municipality.

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This particular pre-fabricated toilet design is said to be durable against graffiti and vandalism, and the use of stainless steel materials allows it to be easily cleaned by pressure washing.

Moreover, it is universally accessible, large enough to fit a stroller or bicycle inside, and the design discourages lingering and illicit activity inside. Slatted panels provide privacy and airflow, but also allow passersby to see the floor of the stall, which provides added safety through visibility if someone inside needs medical assistance.

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“Portland Loo” public washroom completed at Coopers’ Park on the northeast False Creek seawall. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

“Portland Loo” public washroom completed at Coopers’ Park on the Northeast False Creek seawall. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

This is the second Portland Loo location in Vancouver and the third single-stall installation of the modular unit.

In 2021, the Park Board indicated it was installing Portland Loo facilities at four locations, with two stalls co-located at Crab Park, one stall at Coopers’ Park, and one stall at Columbia Park in the Oakridge area to replace a previous washroom building damaged by fire in 2012.

The Portland Loo stalls at Crab Park reached completion in July 2022.

“Portland Loo” public washroom completed at Coopers’ Park on the northeast False Creek seawall. (Kenneth Chan/Daily Hive)

The Park Board estimated in 2021 the single-stall Portland Loo at Coopers’ Park would carry a total cost of $482,000, including about $329,000 for on-site work such as the concrete foundation and the water and sewer connections.

In an email to Daily Hive Urbanized, the Park Board states the Coopers’ Park washroom will be open sometime over the coming weeks.

This is intended to be the first major change to the area’s public spaces, with the Park Board also planning a unique play feature in the space under the bridge next to the washroom, and a complete overhaul of the Coopers’ Park dog park.

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“Portland Loo” public washroom at Crab Park. (Google Maps)

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The pair of single-occupancy “Portland Loo” public washroom structures at Crab Park. (Vancouver Park Board)

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