Temporary bathrooms are in front of the bathrooms. 

CITRUS HEIGHTS, CA (MPG) - The restrooms on the east side of Rusch Community Park directly behind its administration building could be closed for several more months, according to the Sunrise Recreation and Park District (SRPD). The east side restroom facility at Rusch Park was opened in August 2002 and is situated adjacent to the craft program building.

As of late February, signs posted on the restroom facilities across from the Rusch Park Community Center stated that the restrooms are closed until further notice.

Except for restrooms specifically used inside the gated pool area, there is only one public restroom facility on the east side of the park, where a basketball court, two playgrounds and a covered picnic area are located.

During weekday hours, park users can use the public restrooms in the main administration building.

A bathroom closure sign is in front of the men’s bathroom.

The current closure is due to a pair of sewer ejector discharge pumps which are no longer operational, according to Wayne Edmundson, Sunrise Parks and Recreation District parks and facilities superintendent.

“As of March 1, SRPD has provided (two) additional portable restrooms for this park site, and there is currently one large ADA unit, and two standard sized portable restrooms now at this location,” said Wayne Edmundson, parks and facilities superintendent for the Sunrise Parks and Recreation District.

“All these portable restroom units are currently being serviced twice a week with augmented cleanings being provided by park district staff as needed,” Edmundson said.

“We (SRPD) will continue to monitor public use of these restrooms as we move further into the busier season and reevaluate and adjust to public needs as necessary,” he said.

Edmundson was asked to estimate repair and replacement costs incurred by the district to the bathroom facilities at Rusch Park. Sunrise Recreation and Park District has averaged approximately $5,000 a year in costs over the past few years, adding a single “service call” can cost as much as $2,500 or more, and depending on reoccurrence, can easily exceed $10,000 in repairs over a 12-month period.

The women’s bathroom is closed. 

“SRPD retrofitted the restroom interiors recently by replacing all the porcelain fixtures (sinks and toilets) with stainless-steel models, due to high volumes of vandalism,” he said. “This renovation required over $10,000 in Sunrise Recreation and Park District (SRPD) funds to complete.”

“We at (SRPD) have not recently done an independent analysis on adding another restroom building at Rusch Park specifically,” Edmundson said. “However, we have added other restroom facilities throughout our SRPD park system since then, at today's prices, a new restroom facility of that size would cost well over $200,000,” he said.

Sunrise Recreation and Park District plans to launch a request for proposals this month in hopes of finding a contractor to perform the needed sewer ejector discharge pump repairs. The deadline for submitting bids is April 5 and Edmundson said the district anticipates awarding the bid during the park district’s upcoming April board meeting.

“This is not the first time such a failure has occurred, and in fact it has failed multiple times in past years due to the sewer ejector discharge pumps being damaged,” Edmundson said, adding that the restroom building has been a frequent target of vandalism. The pumps have become damaged when large materials and solid objects are flushed down the system.

The district has also contracted with an engineering firm to conduct a full system analysis, which found the system needs an upgraded power supply, and the pumps themselves will need to be replaced and upgraded to higher horsepower and capabilities, according to the park district.

“The cost of upgrading the complete existing system is currently unknown at the moment but we are currently out to public bid and we’re asking potential bidders to incur all costs into their submitted bid packages. The RFP closes on April 5th and we expect to know more after that time,” Edmundson said.