Gender-Neutral Restroom Signage Coming to Highland Park

HIGHLAND PARK, IL - The city of Highland Park is poised to become one of the first municipalities nationwide to adopt gender-neutral restroom signage.

The city plans to soon install gender-neutral restroom signage at all single-occupancy restrooms operated by the city and encourage all Highland Park businesses to do the same, according to City Manager Ghida Neukirch.

It’s an initiative initially brought up in Highland Park by Mayor Nancy Rotering as an effort to “be sensitive to all individuals in our community.”

“We did research on this, looked at similar measures implemented in Evanston and Washington, D.C. among other places and think it’s just another example of the city of Highland Park really just taking a leadership position and being at the forefront of addressing the issue of community and being sensitive to that,” Neukirch said.

Discussion on making all single-occupancy restrooms at city buildings gender-neutral was brought up by the City Council at its most recent meeting and, according to Neukirch, was championed unanimously been all city representatives.

"It was agreed by all that we move forward in this regard."

In addition, city officials have begun contacting State Sen. Julie Morrison, D-Deerfield on the possibility of enacting a statewide measure.

Last November, the city of Evanston became just the seventh municipality nationally (and first in the Midwest) to adopt gender-neutral restroom signage. The Evanston ordinance requires all city facilities, including businesses, include the new signage at all single occupancy restrooms when there are either one or three or more restrooms.

Other cities with new laws similar to Evanston’s include Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., West Hollywood, Calif., Seattle, Portland, Ore. and Austin.

The plan in Highland Park does not include a “mandate” that businesses participate, although Neukirch said all city restrooms meeting the criteria will be changed and that the city will encourage members of the business community to do the same.

She said the change will affect 16 of the 27 restrooms operated by city services and that there will be no change in the signs at multi-stall restrooms. According to the Illinois Plumbing Code, all multi-stall restrooms in the state must be labeled for either “men” or “women.”

But Neukirch said the collaboration with Morrison is being done with an effort to reverse that part of the plumbing code.

“We are requesting that the state code be modified,” she said.

The signage change in Highland Park will affect the restroom facilities at City Hall and the city’s Public Works, Senior Center, Youth Center, train station and police station.