WEEKLY EDITION AUGUST 22, 2018
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Portable Sanitation and Local Ordinances
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Coeur d'Alene ordinance provides model language
The ordinance that emerged in Coeur d'Alene is a good place for other cities to start if they are thinking of creating or
updating their rules concerning portable restrooms. The key components of Coeur d'Alene's 2016 "Porta Potty Ordinance"
include:
• A stated purpose: to preserve and protect the health, safety, and general welfare of persons and property in the City
by regulating the location and maintenance of portable restrooms, and requiring a permit for their use and placement.
• A definitions section, including a definition of "seasonal use" as no more than one hundred eighty (180) consecutive
days in a calendar year and "temporary use" as not exceeding seven (7) consecutive days and not repeated within the
calendar year.
• A statement of allowable use: "Portable
toilets may only be used to provide:
bathroom facilities for community and
special events; seasonal bathroom
facilities in conjunction with commercial
activities; bathroom facilities in
conjunction with and during public or
private construction activities; bathroom
facilities located on public property for
members of the public; and bathroom
facilities for temporary use under special
circumstances when adequate
permanent bathroom facilities are
unavailable. In no case shall portable
toilets be placed or maintained as
permanent sanitary facilities or in lieu of the connection of a site or facility to the City's sanitary sewer system."
• The allowance for placement of portable restrooms with an administrative permit for commercial uses in commercial
and manufacturing zones, but only on a seasonal basis.
• The requirement for an administrative permit, together with the necessary contents of a permit application and
exceptions to the permit requirement.
• Screening requirements and clarification on when review is required.
•
Establishment of standards for setbacks, orientation/screening, location of portable toilets, and required maintenance.
• A declaration that portable toilets placed or maintained in violation of the ordinance constitute a public nuisance.
A provision that the ordinance will be enforced by any authorized City official.
For more information, read the full ordinance here.
PROs and city officials can contact the PSAI for support
• Not all cities and counties are the same. The Coeur d'Alene ordinance won't be right for everyone, and each
municipality will need to take local considerations into account.
