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Portable Toilets Coming To Santa Ana Civic Center For 24-Hour Homeless Access

SANTA ANA (CBSLA.com) — Officials in Santa Ana are moving forward with plans to install new portable bathrooms at the Orange County Civic Center to provide 24-hour access for hundreds of homeless people.

Installations of the new bathrooms began Monday at a "highly visible" location near Ross Street, according to Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do, who says nearly 400 people who live in and around the Civic Center in downtown Santa Ana have few options once the Center's restrooms are closed at night.

"You take access to a bathroom for granted," said Do. "After you sit and talk with people who are currently living at the Civic Center, you realize how difficult it can be to fulfill a basic human need."

The portable toilets are set to arrive just days after the city temporarily closed the public library for renovations.

Last November, county officials bought an industrial site at 1000 N. Kraemer Place for $4.25 million with plans to convert it to a 200-bed homeless shelter to replace two temporary shelters in Fullerton and Santa Ana.

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