The city of Seattle Parks and Recreation Department has set up a temporary portable toilet next to the Betty Bowen Viewpoint in Marshall Park across the street from the popular wedding venue on upper Queen Anne Hill.
But the new addition to the neighborhood doesn't sit well with everybody, and it may have to be removed because of historical considerations.
"I think it's pretty outrageous," said Maureen Caruso. She lives at the top of the Hill, refers to the portable toilet as an "outhouse," and complains that it's not even in Parsons Garden. "It really is an ugly thing."
The toilet has been screened on two sides with wooden lattice and dark cloth, and it will only be available for use when there are wedding receptions in Parsons Garden, said Parks Department spokeswoman Dewey Potter.
The weddings usually take place on weekends, the toilet will remain locked the rest of the time, and it will be removed at the end of the summer wedding season, she said.
Caruso objects to having the portable toilet in the neighborhood for esthetic and economic reasons.
"If we're going to have an outhouse here, our property taxes should be lowered to reflect that," she said.
Caruso said she and at least one other neighborhood resident have complained to the Parks Department about the portable toilet, a fact confirmed by Potter. "I think it's just a couple of people," Potter said.
Potter sees a need for the portable toilet, though.
"It's a service to our guests," she said of Parsons Garden wedding parties, which pay a flat $350 fee and the hourly wage of a parks attendant.
There was no public process about locating the portable toilet because it is only temporary, according to Potter.
A special permit wasn't required because the toilet is a temporary accessory use, according to Alan Justad, a spokesman from the city of Seattle Department of Design Construction and Land Use.
However, a street-use permit is normally required for locating a toilet on the sidewalk, according Liz Rankin from the Seattle Department of Transportation. Esthetic considerations have no bearing on the decision, but there are some fairly stringent requirements before a street-use permit is issued for a portable toilet, she said.
The toilets can't block sight lines of vehicles at intersections, they can't obstruct access to utilities, and they can't interfere with street trees, Rankin said. When asked whether a street-use permit has ever been denied for a portable toilet, she said: "No, not that I know of."
That might change, though. Caruso also complained about the toilet to Ellen Monrad, chairwoman of the Queen Anne Community Council, and Monrad has taken a historical approach to the issue by contacting the Landmarks Preservation Board.
In an e-mail to Landmarks Preservation Board staffer Beth Chave, Monrad wrote that the community council doesn't believe the portable toilet enhances the view of the historically designated Wilcox Wall to the north of Marshall Park.
Whether that's enough reason to remove the toilet remains to be seen. Chave was still checking out the situation at press deadline, but Monrad is adamant about seeing the toilet removed.
"The Queen Anne Community Council would very much like to see the 'privy' at the very least moved into a more screened location in Parsons Garden," she wrote Chave.
Potter said the Parks Department is looking at some day installing a permanent toilet in Parsons Garden, "but we're just not there yet."
Not everyone sees what the big deal is about the portable toilet. A Queen Anne woman walking near Parsons Garden last week declined to give her name, but she pooh-poohed the idea of removing the toilet.
"I'm all in favor of having a place for someone to pee," the woman said of wedding guests at Parsons Garden.
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