Thank you to Doug Miller for his investigative efforts regarding Proposition 8, the “bathroom bond.” I used the type of bathroom pictured in Miller’s piece in Washington state a couple of years ago.
I was impressed with how clean it was, and my immediate next thought was about how much the town cared about its residents and visitors. That I remember that particular bathroom visit two years later says a lot.
As an Anchorage resident, I’m aware a toilet is not always available when I need one. Businesses often, for a variety of understandable reasons, do not allow people to use their restrooms. Portapotties are usually seasonal, if available at all. Unhoused people are left to just “go wherever.”
Sometimes, as I move about in Anchorage and Alaska, I envision myself as a tourist, and I take special note of the public facilities.
I usually feel embarrassed about them. (I do care what tourists think. They are integral to our current and future economy. They might like Alaska enough to stay, which is even better.)
I’m encouraged to learn the price estimates in the bond package include operations and maintenance. I’m happy to pay a few dollars per year to make Anchorage a nicer place and to have a clean place to “go” when I need one.
— Jen Huvar
Anchorage
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