New toilet block delivered to Ōtangarei's Fishbone Park

A new toilet block has been delivered to the local sports ground in a Whangārei community.

The concrete toilet block was transported on the back of a truck from Auckland to Ōtangarei's Fishbone Park on Thursday morning.

The toilet block, which contains two disability friendly toilet cubicles, was carefully lifted up by a crane, turned around, positioned over pipe work which had already been installed in the ground and lowered on to its new home.

While the new block is nestled on to its spot on the edge of the carpark off William Jones Drive, it still needs to be hooked up to the water, power, sewer and stormwater before it can be used. A concrete pad will also be laid out the front of the block.

Whangārei District Council waste and drainage field officer Grant Alsop said installing the new toilet block would cost about $150,000 altogether.

"We'd like to think it'll be operational mid-November."

The new toilet block is lifted onto the site at Fishbone Park. Photo/Michael Cunningham

Alsop said he was working with the community to arrange local artists to paint a mural on the outside of the toilet bock.

He said the community had been asking for a toilet block at the grounds and he thought the installation of the block would be well received.

Fishbone Park is home to the Otangarei Knights and Alsop said the council had been putting portaloos at the ground during the rugby league season for people to use.

The installation of this block follows the opening of a block in the carpark at Mount Parihaka in July last year. That block, which cost around $200,000 was partially funded by the Regional Mid-sized Tourism Facilities Grant Fund.