Portable Sanitation Association International

WEEKLY EDITION AUGUST 22, 2018 CONTINUED ON PAGE 7 PAGE 3 Portable Sanitation and Local Ordinances KOS RESOURCE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 2 • The Coeur d'Alene City Council and Planning Commission held a joint workshop on January 14, 2016. One of the agenda items was permission to use "porta potties for 'seasonal' businesses." A local business owner had requested the Council address his desire to use portable restrooms for a beer garden that is only open during warm weather. At the time, the Coeur d'Alene city code restricted the use of "privies" in the city other than for construction activities. It did not speak to of the use portable restrooms at all. • At the workshop there was much discussion about the difference between privies and portable restrooms (referred to in Coeur d'Alene's documented minutes as "porta potties"), how these units are used in some city parks and at special events, the possible need for hand washing stations, the definition of seasonal businesses, public land versus business use, the practical application of use at a commercial business, the cost of building portable restroom structures, and enforcement. • To move forward, the City Council directed Coeur d'Alene city staff to develop codes regulating portable restrooms including provisions for public use, special events, commercial use, seasonal guidelines and a definition of a seasonal business, and enclosures/aesthetics related their use. • Staff from the Coeur d'Alene legal, planning, municipal services, wastewater, parks and recreation, and building departments met after the workshop to come up with a list of key components to be included in a draft ordinance. The document they created addressed the items requested by the City Council as well as those issues discovered by the city staff during their due diligence. • The Planning Commission held a second workshop in March of 2016. In that meeting city staff asked for input on the key components of the draft ordinance before moving forward with finalizing the language and scheduling a public hearing. • The staff then incorporated input from the Commission and elected officials received during that second meeting into the new "Porta Potty Ordinance." They also added language to allow the use of portable restrooms at public transit sites provided the city approves the location and for the temporary use of portable restrooms at special events and private functions without a permit. In addition, input from the Municipal Services Department was incorporated to allow portable restrooms for seasonal commercial uses on property zoned for manufacturing and for the possible seasonal use of portable restrooms for temporary mobile vendors. These uses require a permit. • The financial analysis of the proposed ordinance determined the changes to the Coeur d'Alene approach to portable sanitation would be cost neutral. The city added a permit fee for some types of portable restroom uses that would cover administrative costs. Otherwise, any additional costs to the city appeared to be nominal.

• Cover