The Municipal Lane public toilets remain closed under the Orange setting of the Covid-19 traffic light system and Dunedin City Library toilets can be accessed only by children aged under 12 and people who have a Covid-19 vaccine pass.
Asta Armalyte-Ghidella is one Dunedin resident saddened by the Dunedin City Council’s stance.
"I thought it was wrong that people were refused a basic need," she said.
Ms Armalyte-Ghidella had been vaccinated, but she was worried about unvaccinated people being further excluded from society — they had already lost jobs and lacked access to some services — and she wondered how use of a public bathroom was not considered essential.
A council spokesman said its priority was to keep its staff, customers and the wider community safe.
The Municipal Lane public toilets were closed when the Government ratcheted up Covid-19 alert levels this year.
The restrooms had offered a range of services in addition to the toilets and there was a reception area for this, permanently staffed.
The council decided after a risk assessment it could not guarantee staff safety under the Orange traffic light setting, the council spokesman said.
Public toilets, where vaccine passes were not required for entry, were still available in the Wilson Parking Building at 54 Moray Pl, the bus hub in Great King St and outside the Dunedin Railway Station.
The council told Ms Armalyte-Ghidella decisions related to Covid-19 had not been made lightly.
Council management had decided people working at and visiting "public-facing facilities", such as the Civic Centre and libraries, must be vaccinated.
"We appreciated a number of our customers would be affected if they were unvaccinated."
Factors taken into account in risk assessments included how many people used facilities and their proximity.
