More public restrooms coming to the Virginia Beach Oceanfront

Beachgoers: Relief is on the way.

The city is adding a new public restroom facility in the resort area — where visitors have long complained about having to walk several blocks to find one. Two aging restroom buildings also will be demolished and replaced with a modern one.

Construction on the $2.25 million project will begin soon. The new facility at 20th Street, next to the Boardwalk, will be built this fall. The existing buildings, at 30th Street, will be replaced over the winter.

The project is funded through tourism taxes.

According to the city, a common visitor complaint is the lack of clean, modern public restrooms and changing facilities in the resort area. The city has been using portable restrooms to fill in the gaps on streets without restrooms.

Although the new buildings will not include changing areas, they will have modern amenities, said Emily Archer, city project planner.

The 20th Street facility will feature five unisex stalls and an outdoor open shower pole and foot wash. The building will look similar to a new shower facility at 2nd Street, except it will not have enclosed showers.

The 30th Street restroom buildings, built in 1980, block the view of the ocean from Atlantic Avenue looking east. They will be demolished and replaced with a structure similar to what will be built on 20th Street, opening up the view and providing better access to the Boardwalk, Archer said.

It will include seven unisex stalls, two outdoor open shower poles and a foot wash.

Both buildings are expected to be open by next summer, making for a total of six public restroom facilities at the Oceanfront at 2nd, 17th, 20th, 24th, 30th and 31st streets.

It will cost an estimated $160,000 per year for custodial services, maintenance and utility costs for the new restrooms, according to the city.

Stacy Parker, 757-222-5125, stacy.parker@pilotonline.com