Provincetown proposes $300,000 McMillan Pier restroom renovation; some trans residents say they were excluded from final design

Town Manager Alex Morris outlined Article 19.6 as part of the capital improvement plan: a roughly $300,000 renovation of the McMillan Pier comfort station intended to increase privacy and accessibility by installing floor‑to‑ceiling partitions around toilets and urinals, adding two ADA family single stalls, and creating a separate space for the attendant. "It reconfigures select fixtures, to improve comfort and privacy," Morris said, and presented the renovated layout showing enclosed urinals and added single‑stall, accessible options.

Why it matters: The project follows last year's nonbinding Town Meeting resolution urging a transition to gender‑inclusive restrooms. Morris said staff accelerated measures where possible without a prior capital appropriation and chose a lower‑cost option after an estimate for a full renovation exceeded $1 million.

Process and dispute: Morris said the Select Board and town staff convened a working group that included trans representation and that staff updated the working group on designs and cost in September. A participant who identified themself as trans and who said they previously authored related work requested clarity on how many trans people had been engaged, stating, "I was never asked to weigh in on this design" and later, "I was not" (referring to involvement on final design documents). Morris responded that the participant had been included on email updates and that the working group had opportunities to provide feedback; he said town staff proceeded to identify practical, lower‑cost measures ready for Town Meeting given timing constraints.

Design details: The proposed plan keeps four urinals enclosed within stalls on the right side of the mock‑up, adds full floor‑to‑ceiling partitions, and creates two dedicated ADA family single‑stall restrooms. Morris said the approach was intended to reduce costs while addressing privacy complaints and to ensure availability of gender‑inclusive single‑stall accessible options across municipal sites.

Public comments: Speakers asked whether trans community members had been consulted on designers and whether the chosen consultant was vetted; Morris said the town used its on‑retainer engineer and architect to keep costs down because the effort had no prior funding and the town sought an affordable path to implement voters' nonbinding directive.

Next steps: Article 19.6 will be considered at Town Meeting. Voters can approve, reject or remove projects from the CIP; if approved, detailed design and any further procurement and permitting will follow the town's capital project processes. The Select Board and staff said they will continue outreach on other restroom sites and steps beyond the McMillan Pier project.