Renovation project planned for Old Orchard Beach public restroom

The public restroom building on West Grand Avenue in Old Orchard Beach will get a makeover.

The town “Comfort Station,” a brick building at 6 West Grand Ave., is open during the summer months.

According to Town Manager Diana Asanza, the building hasn’t had a major upgrade in 30 years, and its long overdue. She said the building is unheated and uninsulated, and the walls are deteriorating. The roof and windows need to be replaced, and plumbing and concrete work also need to be done.

“This bathroom is a very high-traffic bathroom. It sees a lot of people, so we have to ensure that the equipment that is inside – the toilets, the sinks, the fixtures – will withstand the foot traffic,” she said.

Brent Bridges, a client strategist with Woodard and Curran, said that the proposed project would replace everything except the bones of the building, and would add family bathroom stalls separate from the men’s and women’s bathrooms.

The town received three bids for the project, and the lowest bid came from Doten’s Construction of Freeport. Asanza said the bid originally came in at $996,000, but the town worked with the engineer to bring the price down without comprising the project. The current estimate is $920,000, she said, and the Town Council voted to allow the town to spend up to $950,000 on the project.

About two thirds of the cost of the project - $667,015 – will come from Federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds, and the rest will come from the town’s undesignated fund.

The refurbished bathroom would be insulated and heated, to help keep the building from deteriorating, and to give the option of keeping it open longer, said Asanza.

According to the town’s bid request, the project is to be “substantially complete” by Friday, June 27, 2025.

Councilor Michael Tousignant said he saw a demand for the bathroom to extend the months the bathroom was open, as some businesses open in the spring and stay open through the fall.

Saco Bay News Publisher Liz Gotthelf can be reached at newsdesk@sacobaynews.com.