The self-cleaning public toilets that are under construction in Montreal are causing a stink with residents and merchants in Chinatown.

Bill Wong of the Sun Yat Sen Park Foundation said the city did not adequately consult the Chinese community before deciding to install a toilet in the middle of Sun Yat Sen Park.

The park is named after the first president of the Republic of China, and it is home to multiple important cultural events each year.

But the organization that is responsible for the park never knew a toilet was being installed until after construction began.

"The shopkeeper told me that they were going to put a toilet here and I walked by because I live here in Chinatown. I walked by and I saw the construction started. I said 'what's going on' you know?" said Wong.

Fo Niemi, the executive director of CRARR, said many Chinatown residents were not informed, and said if they were, they would likely have opposed the project.

"Can you just imagine having some sort of place to honour René Levesque and suddenly bang, some city authority decides to build a public toilet without even consulting the family or consulting who runs this kind of place?" said Niemi.

He said it's part of a pattern of neglect by the city administration.

"This seems to be a sort of perpetuation of the kind of neglectfulness, sometimes we call it systematic forgetfulness, that people in Chinatown tend to experience," said Niemi.

Chinatown lies within the borough of Ville Marie, and so its top official is Valerie Plante, who as mayor of Montreal is also mayor of the borough.

She said the community was consulted during the planning stages, and the park was determined to be the best location.

"The needs were coming from tourists and even marginalized populations and citizens wanted to use public bathrooms but not having the opportunity to do so," said Plante.

Those who live and work near the park say installing a toilet in that location is inappropriate.

"I don't know about this toilet," said store owner Yuhua Zuo. "If it's going to be cleaned well, then maybe, but if not it will be a big problem."

Construction of the $400,000 toilet is still in the early stages and should be finished later this year but Wong hopes the city of Montreal will reconsider.

"I just hope that it goes fast or even better they just scrap the whole thing," said Wong.