Concerns are being raised about the design of the Northern Suburbs Community Recreation Hub in Mowbray, after it was confirmed the major publicly funded facility includes exclusively all-gender toilets and changerooms, with no provision for female-only spaces.
Dr Elizabeth Caballero, President of Women Speak Tasmania and a resident of the Bass electorate, said the issue raises serious questions about public accountability, consultation, and the removal of sex-based provision in community infrastructure.
“This is a major taxpayer-funded facility used by families, schools and children — yet it has been deliberately designed without any female-only toilets or changerooms,” Dr Caballero said.
“This was not required by law. It was a design choice.”
The Hub project, delivered by the Tasmanian Government, has also received financial support from the City of Launceston, which contributed approximately $1.27 million and recently approved a $39,000 development fee waiver against council officer advice.
These decisions come as the City of Launceston faces a projected $3.9 million budget deficit and has proposed a 4.9 per cent increase in council rates.
“At a time when residents are being asked to pay more, it is reasonable to expect transparency and accountability in how public funds are used,” Dr Caballero said.
“The community has not been consulted on the removal of single-sex facilities, and there has been no clear explanation of why a balanced approach was not adopted.”
In correspondence from the office of Bass MP Michael Ferguson, it was confirmed that the absence of male and female facilities was not mandated by the National Construction Code, but instead reflected a deliberate design decision.
Dr Caballero said that while individual enclosed cubicles may offer privacy, they do not replace the safeguarding role of clearly defined, sex-based spaces.
“Privacy inside a cubicle is only one part of the picture. Entry, exit, and shared areas remain mixed-sex, and many women and girls rely on the clarity and reassurance that single-sex spaces provide,” she said.
“A practical and inclusive approach would have been to provide both — maintaining female-only and male-only facilities alongside all-gender options.”
Dr Caballero has written to the Minister for Sport, Nick Duigan, but has not yet received a response.
“This is a straight forward public policy question: should women and girls continue to have access to dedicated spaces in community facilities — yes or no?” she said.
Dr Caballero is calling on the Tasmanian Government to review the design of the facility and to ensure future public infrastructure projects retain sex-based provision alongside inclusive alternatives.
-ENDS-
Media Contact:
Dr Elizabeth Caballero
President, Women Speak Tasmania