A PUBLIC toilet block near Minehead Harbour has sprung a leak which could cost nearly £3,000 to fix.
Town councillors will be asked to approve the necessary repair work to an underground water supply line from the meter to the Quay West car park building when they meet on Tuesday (March 25).
Town clerk Ben Parker said a water inlet leak had been identified and Wessex Water had served the council with a 14-day notice for repair of the issue.
The toilet block was refurbished at a cost of £60,000 two years ago amid concern over a lack of facilities for visitors to the town when they were closed in early 2023.
But the town council had the toilets reopened in a matter of months after an extensive redesign and refit in time for the peak visitor season.
The refurbishment included renewing wall, floor, and ceiling coverings, enlarging cubicles, and installing new vanity units, taps, baby changing units, and washroom accessories.
Mr Parker said contractors asked to quote for leak detection works had instead advised a complete re-piping solution should be considered because of the age of the pipe and difficulty in locating leaks precisely.
He said: “All quoting contractors have confirmed their ability to commence and complete the works within the timeframe required.
“However, it should be noted that the toilet block may need to be closed for up to one week while the repair work is being carried out.”
Mr Parker said the council did not have an allocated budget for the unexpected repair and it would need to be financed using a general maintenance budget in the authority’s public toilets cost centre.
He said there could also be extra costs which were currently unknown, such as any compensation to Somerset Council if the car park was disrupted by excavation work.