West Hollywood, Calif. (AP) – West Hollywood now requires gender-neutral restrooms under a law that aims to make those with a non-traditional “gender identity” more welcome.
The ordinance takes effect on Jan. 15, 2015 and requires that restrooms with only one stall in restaurants, businesses and public places cannot restrict it to a specific sex either by signage or fixtures.
Existing businesses have 60 days to make changes, but new ones must heed the requirements immediately.
The Los Angeles suburb, which has a sizeable gay and transgender population, passed the ordinance in June. It doesn’t apply to multiple-stall restrooms.
“Gender-specific restrooms can be unwelcoming and potentially unsafe for many people whose gender identity falls outside of traditional gender norms,” said a city statement released this week.
The city said the law also will prove beneficial to “people with disabilities or with personal attendants, people with children of a different gender, and to the many people who have waited in line for a gender-specific restroom” when stalls for the opposite sex are empty.
A similar law was passed in 2006 in Washington, D.C. Philadelphia passed a measure in 2013 that requires new or renovated city-owned buildings to include gender-neutral bathrooms.
