State Parks is looking at two possible locations for public restrooms in Garrapata State Park.

When the number of visitors rises, so do bathroom visits. And California State Parks personnel who manage and maintain several of the most populated parks in Big Sur are no stranger to this correlation.

State Parks is exploring two popular locations in Garrapata State Park – Soberanes Canyon and Garrapata Beach – to install permanent restrooms, replacing the current, temporary porta-potties with vault toilets. They’re in the design and planning phase and recently wrapped up gathering initial public input through two Big Sur Multi-Agency Advisory Council meetings, as well as public field trips to talk about the project on Aug. 6 and Aug. 9.

“We have people using the bathroom in the bushes, walking off trails, trampling work sites and natural resources in certain areas,” John Hiles, State Parks project lead, told a small group of people on the side of Highway 1 on Wednesday morning, Aug. 6. “That’s why we have projects like this that we’re proposing.”

Hiles says that while most are in support of bathrooms in these highly trafficked areas, the concern lies in the specific placement alongside the highway, whether or not they will impact the viewshed and, most critically, whether their construction fits within the guardrails of the Big Sur Land Use plan.

The proposed toilets will have two stalls and be similar to those used at national parks and many campgrounds: vault toilets with no running water that collect waste in a hole dug into the ground, ventilated by high ceilings.

At Garrapata Beach, tensions between State Parks and locals center on people crossing the road to use the restrooms, and their visibility from Highway 1. The restroom planned for Soberanes Canyon has seen less pushback so far, with plans to be nestled near the current portable restrooms at the trailhead on the east side of the highway.

“A challenge we have is we have one group that doesn’t want any advertisement, and another group wants every bathroom on Google Maps so that the public knows where they can find it,” Hiles says.

The project aims to complete design and permitting by early next year, with construction expected to take up to two years. While the restrooms themselves will be prefabricated, the site work, including pads and road improvements, will be the most costly part of the project.

The Coastal Conservancy is funding the design and permitting, covering costs for environmental review and permits. Funding for construction has not yet been identified.

State Parks is working with environmental consultant Denise Duffy and Associates to conduct an environmental review as well as BKF Engineers to prepare an analysis of design plans. Caltrans, with jurisdiction over the highway, is also involved.

“This has been a project that has been talked about for decades,” Hiles said at the Garrapata Beach site visit on Aug. 6. “This really is the furthest that we’ve been able to move it thanks to support from the Coastal Conservancy and this entire team trying to find a solution.”