Throughout the years, West High School’s bathrooms have dwindled. What was once well taken care of restrooms, has now become a place where people decide to throw their trash, and not in the trash cans provided. They also are found to be continuously flooded, and are known for their appalling odor.
According to junior Bridget Driver, “The bathrooms are extremely overcrowded, very smoky, there are also not a lot of stalls to go into. During passing time it is impossible to use the restroom without your shoes getting soaked. Some stalls do not lock, others don’t even close all the way. The bathrooms are always freezing, specifically the girls bathroom near the cafe!”
Sophomore Raquen Richardson said, “The bathrooms constantly smell, and the urinals overflow and leave water all over the floors. They are also constantly packed with people.”
Both girls and boys have very opinionated feelings on the status of the restrooms here. Though ultimately, there are always going to be issues no matter the school. There is only so much time in a day, and only so many custodians and plumbers in the school district. Davenport West was built in 1960 meaning the school’s plumbing is over 60 years old. All schools in the Davenport district were built around the same time, all of these schools have their own issues due to the school’s ages. It isn’t just a West High school problem, it is a district difficulty.
“Students in the building think it’s just West struggling with plumbing issues though it’s a general problem in our city, in older parts especially. It also does not help that vapes are constantly being flushed down the toilets, clogging the pipes, and causing obstructions. The main sewer was recently dug into, removing hundreds of vape pens,” said West janitor Tammy Midey.
There are also missing sinks and mirrors in some of the restrooms. It is said that students are constantly taking down these things, causing maintenance to get tired of putting them back up. More problems in the bathrooms include things constantly being vandalized, broken and/or stolen. This explains why they are never pristine or pleasing to the eye.
Overall it is an older school, there are always going to be issues that need to be taken care of, but most of its issues are caused by the age of building and piping systems.
