FDNY FH BATHROOMS ARE NOT OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

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UFA INFO FAX #57 of 2018 ? September 27th 2018
NYC FIREHOUSE BATHROOMS ARE NOT OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

It has long been a myth that because NYC Firehouses are government owned the restrooms must be open to the public. Recently several Companies have experienced issues related to public use of the Firehouse facilities. Those Companies operated under the assumption that they did not have authority to deny the public access to the bathrooms. The UFA, along with The UFOA, asked The Department to clarify and reiterate that Firehouse bathrooms are not open to the public. Attached is the letter we received from The Department confirming that the firehouse restrooms are not open to the public. Please post as necessary.

MEMORANDUM

To: Terryl Brown, Chief Legal Officer
Fr: Carol Moran, Director - General Law Unit
Re: NYC Public Bathrooms
Da: September 20, 2018

In response to a recent inquiry about public use of FDNY Firehouse bathrooms, General Law reviewed the internal guidelines as well as the official NYC guide to public facilities. Although FDNY Firehouse and EMS station locations are city owned premises, they are not open to the public and there is no requirement that those facility restrooms be available to the public. ?NYC The Official Guide? includes a section entitled ?Public Restrooms? which lists NYC Parks Dept. public facilities and expressly includes NYPD stations - but not FDNY premises - as locations the public may request restroom use. Even the unofficial list of public restrooms online identified on the Map of Free NYC Restrooms (http://m3.mappler.net/nyrestroom/) lists all Police Precincts. It does not include any Firehouse or EMS Station locations.

Bathroom facility use and public access to firehouses is explained in Chapter 19 of the Regulations but appears by its plain language that restrooms are restricted to members and authorized visitors. Only during designated ?Open House? periods is the public permitted, and then only on the apparatus floor.

19.1.15 Company Commanders shall be responsible for providing privacy of bathroom
facilities for members of both sexes. Requisitions for missing or defective doors
or locks shall be forwarded promptly. Designated female facilities (locker rooms
and bathrooms) within quarters are for the exclusive use of FDNY female
members and female visitors. Other than for cleaning and maintenance, male
members and male visitors shall not enter or use any female-only facilities unless
directed to do so by the Company Commander. Chief Officers shall ensure
compliance when conducting an inspection of company quarters.

19.2.1 Quarters shall be used only for Department business. Visitors shall not be
permitted to remain in quarters after 2200 hours. Social assemblages shall be
prohibited at all times. Any type of sales promotions or private business activity
shall be prohibited at all times unless permitted by the Chief of Department.
19.2.10 Periodically, for the purpose of educating the public in all phases of fire
prevention, as well as furtherance of sound public relations, fire houses
throughout the city shall, while the company is present, be open to the general
public and visitors cordially received. Designated dates and hours for such "Open
House" periods will be promulgated in advance on department orders.

19.2.13 During "Open House" periods no visitors shall be permitted above or below the
apparatus floor. Upon receipt of an alarm to which the unit responds, extreme caution shall be exercised and visitors requested to leave quarters before moving the apparatus.

Language from selected sections of ?NYC The Official Guide? is specific and clear as to any public expectation that Parks and NYPD restroom facilities may be used by the public, and that working firehouses are not open to the public.
Throughout New York City, there are restroom facilities you can use while you?re out and about sightseeing. A few tips:
You can find a full list of New York City parks with public restrooms at the Parks Department website. The public restroom in Bryant Park?replete with attendants, Toto toilets and fixtures, a classical-music soundtrack and fresh flowers?is perhaps the most notable one in the City?
Other popular public restrooms include those at transportation hubs like Grand Central Terminal. And New York City Police Department stations will let you use their bathrooms if you ask?( emphasis added)

The City?s website is clear that a working firehouse is not public space. Regarding visits to and photos of the Ghostbuster?s movie location:
Hook& Ladder Company 8 ?The spot is still a working firehouse so visitors are not allowed inside? .?



Other jurisdictions may allow public use of restroom facilities (for example, San Francisco Fire Stations with ground floor restroom facilities are available for public use between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.). FDNY firehouses, however, are not public spaces and members are not required to allow the public to use the facility for any personal purpose. Visitors are subject to the regulations above and any others that are relevant.
 
Joined
May 6, 2010
Messages
15,589
I wonder how the bathroom issue would have been handled going back many years when well into the '70s some FH bathrooms on the apparatus floor consisted of a floor drain or the famous "slop" sink ...no partitions & just the faucet to "flush" after taking a leak.

 
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