Seattle’s $2M all-gender bathroom: Waterfront Park gets flush new look
Mar 26, 2025, 12:13 PM
An overview of Seattle's Waterfront Park in its downtown neighborhood. (Photo courtesy of Friends of Waterfront Park)
(Photo courtesy of Friends of Waterfront Park)
The city of Seattle and Friends of the Waterfront (FOW) held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the installation of a new bathroom with six all-gender stalls at the Waterfront Park, nestled in Seattle’s downtown neighborhood.
“The restrooms are designed to be welcoming, comfortable, and clean for families to users of all ages and abilities,” the Seattle Office of the Waterfront and Civic Projects stated.
The bathroom expansion in Waterfront Park came with a price tag of approximately $2 million. The Waterfront Park as a whole is expected to cost the city $800 million. The funding comes from a combination of Local Improvement District bonds, city funding, and philanthropic donations.
The six bathroom stalls will be accompanied by a bathroom attendant through Friends of the Waterfront (FOW). It is expected to be cleaned daily and operate between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. Outside of those hours, the facility will be locked.
“I think fundamentally, the reason cities can have challenges with public bathrooms is that there aren’t eyes on the bathroom,” Marshall Foster, Seattle Center Director, told KOMO News. “This is a very different model. This is a full-time dedicated staff who has a focus on keeping this bathroom safe and effective.”
Seattle’s struggles with public restrooms
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In 2004, the city purchased five self-cleaning toilets for $5 million, only for them to become a target for illegal activity. The city cut its losses and sold them four years later for roughly $2,500 each.
The Seattle Office of City Auditor released a report last month detailing how the city of Seattle maintains its public restrooms, or its lack thereof.
“Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) is not meeting its target of cleaning every restroom 2-3 times a day, nor maintaining a consistent level of cleanliness throughout the city,” the Auditor’s Office wrote in its report. “SPR also does not have reliable data to evaluate restroom maintenance performance.”
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