Still no relief at Bay Eighth Street Park

Bay Eighth Street Park has been left high and dry for six months now, with no functioning bathrooms.

“Nobody has said anything or done anything at all. It’s just terrible,” said a Parks Department employee who wished to remain anonymous.

As this paper previously reported in an exclusive story, on February 26 the tennis courts, playground, handball courts and Ben Vitale ballfields had no running water at all. In late June, sprinklers and water fountains were fixed, but the bathrooms remain out of order.

According to the employee, it costs $79,000 to fix the bathrooms, and the city has already spent over $10,000 on four portable bathrooms, which thousands of people have used over the summer, but there is still no place to wash hands.

“Instead of fixing the damn toilets, we have it [the portable bathrooms] cleaned four times a week instead of two times,” the staffer explained. “You gotta go in there, but you can’t wash your hands. I can give you wipes [that I pay for] but that’s about it.”

Park goers agreed.

“With all the taxes that we pay, the local government just keeps cutting back and things don’t get fixed on time,” said Michael Gaggi who was at the playground with his children and some of their friends.

Cristian Gaggi said, “Sometimes I have to go, but I hold it until I get home.”

Isabella Gaggi pointed out, “It’s gross. How can you change your babies?”

Meghan Lawlor, spokesperson for the Parks Department told this paper, “The contractor has been selected, and we are now reviewing plumbing subcontractors who specialize in deep sewer work.”

However, those who work in and use the park say it cannot be fixed soon enough.

“It’s crazy, just crazy. They don’t love us; we are just a number,” the staffer concluded.