Standalone Public Restrooms Pilot – DC Public Restrooms

This pilot, to be conducted by the Department of General Services, DGS: 

  • Directs the DC government to establish a Working Group to explore solutions to the lack of public restrooms in downtown DC. 
  • Establishes a Working Group to consist of DC Water, DPW, DDOT, DGS, DPR, DOH & DHS, MPD, DMPED and five non-governmental representatives: two from DC nonprofits that address homeless issues, one non-profit with a focus on issues affecting seniors, one nonprofit with a focus on public health, and one individual with expertise in urban planning. The Working Group is charged with recommending a pilot program to install and maintain two stand-alone public restrooms open 24/7 in high need locations in the District (providing opportunities, once the sites are selected, for public comment with the ANC in the area where the restroom is to be installed to vote on its installation).
  • Requires that within first 45 days, the Mayor is to go out BIDs, ANCs, and other community organizations requesting that they submit information on areas within their jurisdictions where they consider that there is a need for public restrooms.
  • Requires that within first 180 days, the mayor name the Working Group tasked with proposing the number and type of public restroom facilities, if any, that would best serve the District’s needs. 
  • Charges the MPD with collecting information on police reports at/near the restrooms and the nature of the reports. 
  • Stipulates that at the end of the first year, the Mayor shall report to the Council on the actual annual costs of installing, maintaining, policing, and repairing the public restroom facilities. 
  • Stipulates MPD monitoring information and report to be used to decide whether to continue and/or expand this pilot program.
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