New York City just unveiled its new design for 25¢ public toilets, 20 of which will be on the mean streets next year. A unique and seemingly necessary feature is that the door slides open automatically after 15 minutes--so forget about taking the Sunday Times in there with you.

And if you think it is about design, well, again, it boils down to advertising dollars...

The toilets are being installed as part of an agreement with Cemusa Inc., the North American subsidiary of the Spanish industrial conglomerate FCC Group. Cemusa Inc. will also build 330 newsstands and 3,500 bus shelters.

It will build and maintain all the amenities without charge, and pay a fee to the city, in exchange for the rights to sell advertising on them. Last fall, the company outbid four others for the contract, which could be one of the most lucrative ever awarded, as it would generate at least $1 billion for the city over 20 years.

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