Journal Staff
Sarnia will continue to provide free menstrual products in public washrooms on a permanent basis.
City council has endorsed the idea following a trial period at arenas and park.
Twenty-two dispensers were installed at nine facilities in January of 2020, and the pilot was extended a year because pandemic closures didn’t result in numbers reflective of normal use.
As of November, 1,514 tampons and 1,144 pads had been dispensed, with more than half of them at the Centennial Park Agora.
Canatara Park, Clearwater Arena, City Hall, Sarnia Arena and Progressive Auto Sales Arena also had uptake.
Council voted 8-1 to make the trial permanent. The lone vote against was cast by Coun. Margaret Bird, the only woman on the nine-member council.
The cost of providing feminine hygiene products to the public was estimated at $1,000 a year.