As the general population of Delta College has noticed, this Fall semester, most restrooms are under construction. Many of the restrooms not under construction are now converted from women’s rooms to men’s rooms.
The construction project is to make campus restrooms compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), while also upgrading facilities.
Under ADA compliance, stalls will be bigger, which will be beneficial to people who use mobility devices, such as manual and power wheelchairs.
There have been snags in the process, including mold under old tiling that caused delays.
Restrooms were supposed to be completed by the beginning of the Fall semester, but according to a Measure L Bond document, the current date of Mens’ restrooms being opened, is mid October.
As someone who uses a power wheelchair, I find the news of renovation to be a good thing.
However, I understand the pains and frustrations of the staff and students, when trying to find a restroom.
What went through the minds of staff and students, when they first saw the construction signs on most of the restroom doors, (with an empty bladder) was not to worry, not a big deal.
Then it happens. Someone downs a Pepsi and a half hour or so later, it hits you.
Now they’re rushing to find a restroom, reading signs saying what restrooms are opened.
But oops, the sign was wrong. Shima’s third-floor women’s restroom is actually closed.
A person using a wheelchair or crutches has to rely on elevators, which aren’t always in service, to find restrooms that are accessible to them — a struggle, especially if you have a medically-related incontinence issue.
Doing some research, I went around campus to find the restrooms still open. I also researched what restrooms were the most accessible.
The restrooms located on the first floor of Danner Hall are huge.
The only thing that had me scratching my head, was that the ADA stall in the men’s room has two toilets in it. I guess if you’re comfortable enough, you can invite someone to use the restroom with you.
These restrooms, along with the ones in the Irving Goleman Library, have to be manually accessed. The problem with this is that the doors are heavy and some people who are confined to a wheelchair have no upper-arm strength.
Other restrooms on campus still open and accessible are in the Lawrence and Alma DiRicco Student Center, where there are no issues.
I found the cleanest restrooms to be the ones in the Horton Administration building. I am guessing the reason these remain the cleanest is due them being in the Administration building.
Some final thoughts on the matter of the restrooms on campus: We were supposed to have a modular restroom facility put near the Shima building, at the beginning of the semester. Pardon the pun, but had this been the actual case, it would have been a relief.