Board pauses plan to remodel high-school restrooms; public voices split over single-use bathrooms

The West Valley School District board opened a discussion Tuesday on capital projects and specifically on a previously approved plan to convert existing restrooms to single-use, all-inclusive facilities. Board leadership said the restroom item would be held while the board gathers additional information and hears from staff and community members.

Community organizer Tara Coby, who earlier led a petition drive, summarized her research and said the remodels are intended to provide privacy and safety for all students. “We’re providing a situation where every student, regardless of their gender identity… this is a safe space for every kid,” Coby told the board. She said community volunteers collected several hundred in-person signatures and about 350 online signatures supporting the changes.

Why it matters: board members and speakers linked the restroom proposal to a decision about how to use roughly $1.4 million in remaining bond funds. Some board members and residents said returning excess bond funds to taxpayers should be a priority; others said delaying the restroom work could increase future costs if the district chooses to remodel later.

Board discussion and concerns

Several board members expressed reservations about spending leftover bond funds on restroom remodels without current data showing ongoing safety incidents in existing restrooms. One board member said administrators had described the restroom-safety problem as “a nonissue” at present; another asked for concrete behavior data before committing large capital funds. Board members also urged the facilities committee to finish its review and requested input from east-side schools and from facilities staff about how single-stall staff restrooms might be used in the interim.

Public comment: mixed and often personal

Dozens of community members attended and several spoke. Speakers included parents, district residents and local advocates.

- Matt Linder, who said he generally favors returning excess funds to taxpayers, described the proposal as “one of the lowest priority” projects and questioned the need to spend remodelling funds now rather than reserve for future facilities work.

- Shane Moore, a parent of three district students, told the board he had heard students report bullying and derogatory notes in restrooms and urged the board to protect all students. “I do believe that this is an important process to show that we do or want to protect and serve all students,” he said.

- Other speakers raised practical concerns and alternatives: one commenter suggested adding family/single-stall restrooms in high-traffic areas rather than converting large multi-stall restrooms; another warned about the potential for a closed floor-to-ceiling design to complicate first-responder access in an opioid or medical emergency.

Design, safety and operational points raised by speakers

Supporters and facility consultants cited benefits they said are already reported in other districts: improved privacy, fewer instances of vaping, tagging and bullying, the ability to close a single stall for maintenance without shutting an entire restroom, and easier accommodation for community events when families or people with disabilities need assistance. Critics focused on cost, community trust (how leftover bond money should be spent) and practical tradeoffs; several asked for evidence showing persistent misbehavior in current restrooms before proceeding with a multi-million-dollar remodel.

Board action (discussion only)

The board did not vote to approve or deny the restroom remodels at the meeting. Instead, trustees agreed to delay final action while staff and the facilities committee provide additional information and while the board evaluates legal, safety and budget implications. No contract changes or expenditures were authorized during the session.

Ending

The board opened the item for public comment and heard multiple viewpoints; members instructed staff to collect additional data, consult the facilities committee and bring recommendations back at a later meeting. The superintendent and staff said they will assemble requested material, including any available data from comparable schools and options for interim use of single-stall staff restrooms.