"For Customers Use Only"; A Small Statement With a Big Impact

Naas is changing. Walk through the streets and you’ll notice small signs on café doors and shop windows: “Toilets are for customer use only.” At first, they seem like a simple, practical rule. But these little notices reveal much more — a town at a crossroads, and where the sense of community we’ve always known is changing and evolving. How Naas responds now will determine whether we build a sustainable, inclusive, and resilient town — or lose the qualities that have made it feel like home for many years. Unfortunately, a few bad apples can sour the whole barrel.

The Disappearing Public Toilet

Like many growing towns, Naas has seen a decline in publicly accessible toilets over recent decades. Where public toilets were once available in civic spaces, now visitors and residents often find themselves wandering from shop to shop, hoping for a toilet they’re allowed to use.

When public facilities disappear, private businesses fill the gap — cafés, petrol stations, supermarkets — but with limits. They post the familiar sign: “For customers only.” It’s understandable from a practical perspective, yet it underscores a wider issue: access to basic amenities is becoming contingent on consumption rather than community membership.

A Sign of Wider Inequality

Those five words are about more than hygiene. They reflect who belongs in the town centre and who is excluded. For delivery drivers, parents with young children, the elderly, and those with medical conditions, being refused entry can turn a short trip into a stressful challenge.

For people without stable housing, it becomes a daily reminder of exclusion. Public space is no longer universally accessible; it has been quietly privatised. The shift signals a subtle but meaningful change in community dynamics, one that threatens inclusion and cohesion.

How We Got Here

The decline of public amenities is not unique to Naas. Across Ireland and many Western towns and cities, local governments have faced decades of tight budgets and competing priorities. Amenities that do not directly generate revenue, like public toilets, were easy targets for cuts.

Meanwhile, commercial pressures have reshaped the town centre. Streets are increasingly designed to attract shoppers and visitors rather than support residents. Public infrastructure that once fostered connection, inclusion, and resilience is now seen as optional, and the consequences ripple through the community.

The Cost of Inaction

When people cannot easily access basic facilities, the impact is felt widely:

• Health and mobility issues are exacerbated.

• Visitors may leave frustrated, undermining the town’s appeal.

• Local workers — from tradespeople to delivery drivers — face unnecessary stress.

• The sense of a cohesive, friendly community erodes as spaces become transactional rather than relational.

These consequences underscore that small decisions, like access to toilet facilities, reflect larger values about inclusion, sustainability, and the character of the town.

Naas at a Crossroads

Naas stands at a pivotal moment. The small, indigenous businesses that gave the town its friendly, personal character are diminishing, and what will replace them remains unclear. Will future developments foster inclusion, connection, and a sustainable community? Or will the town become defined solely by convenience, and transactional interactions?

How we respond and plan today will determine whether Naas thrives as a resilient, inclusive, and sustainable community, or loses the qualities that made it feel like home. Public amenities, like accessible toilets, are small but significant indicators of a town’s priorities. Investing in them is an investment in cohesion, dignity, and community identity.

A Measure of Community

What we choose today — the policies we implement, the spaces we design, and the community values we uphold — will shape the Naas of tomorrow. Accessible amenities, thriving local businesses, and thoughtful planning are small steps that send a powerful message: everyone belongs, and everyone matters in the future of our town.