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RESTING A LITTLE EASIER; PUBLIC FAMILY FACILITIES WOULD QUELL FEARS, EMBARRASSMENT.


Byline: Douglas Haberman Staff Writer

Responding to assaults and murders of children in beach and park restrooms, Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850.  County Supervisor Gloria Molina Gloria Molina is a member of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, and the current chairwoman of the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority.[1] Molina grew up as one of ten children in the Los Angeles suburb of Pico Rivera, California, U.S.  will be pushing a solution today: family restrooms.

The private restrooms would allow a mother to accompany her son or a father to escort his daughter into the same lavatory. No need for a parent of a child of the opposite sex to stand outside biting nails while the child uses the restroom.

``That's 95 percent of the issue,'' said Molina's spokesman Miguel Santana Miguel Santana (born February 9, 1965) is a former boxer from Puerto Rico. Santana was born in Canovanas. Boxing career
Miguel Santana had an award winning amateur boxing career, training alongside a young Jose Antonio Rivera, who is a two division world champion himself.
. ``We want families to know their children are safe when using the facilities.''

Supporters of the concept said the time is right. A 9-year-old boy was stabbed and slashed to death last fall in a restroom at an Oceanside beach while his aunt waited unknowingly outside. Two San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley

Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills.
 girls have been sexually assaulted in restrooms at city parks in North Hollywood within the last year.

By offering a safe facility for parents and children, family restrooms also avoid the awkwardness of a father having to bring his young daughter into a men's room or a mother bringing a small son into the women's room women's room
n.
A restroom for women.
, parents say.

Molina plans to offer a motion at the Board of Supervisors meeting today calling for a report within 30 days on how to phase in family restrooms at the county's 61 local parks, 19 community regional parks and eight regional parks as well as at the county's 27 miles of beaches.

The motion is expected to call for consideration of creative safety measures safety measures,
n.pl actions (e.g., use of glasses, face masks) taken to protect patients and office personnel from such known hazards as particles and aerosols from high-speed rotary instruments, mercury vapor, radiation exposure, anesthetic and
, such as locks on stall doors or separating walls, before more costly options that involve adding or rebuilding restrooms.

In a written draft of her motion, Molina also said family restrooms ``must be sanitized san·i·tize  
tr.v. san·i·tized, san·i·tiz·ing, san·i·tiz·es
1. To make sanitary, as by cleaning or disinfecting.

2.
 regularly and always well-stocked with soap, paper towels and other necessities.''

Beachgoers gave the concept a thumbs-up Monday at county beaches.

``I think it's great,'' said Margaret Pate at Zuma Beach in Malibu. The Northridge mother, who has two boys and a girl, said family restrooms would especially be nice for fathers who find it awkward to take their daughters into men's rooms because the urinals lack privacy.

Also at Zuma Beach, Nancy Conway of Van Nuys said the county should keep the family restrooms well-stocked with toilet paper and sanitary seat covers and clean them often, especially on weekends.

``They get yucky,'' she said. ``It wouldn't be a bad idea to clean them more than once a day.'' Because of the condition of beach restrooms, she avoids them whenever possible.

As she applied suntan lotion suntan lotion sun nlotion f or lait m solaire

suntan lotion sun nSonnenmilch f 
 to her 9-year-old daughter, Belinda Robins of Tarzana said family restrooms would take away one of the worst fears of parents. ``I always have the stress of telling (my son), Make sure no one touches you,'' she said.

``I love this idea,'' said Rosalind Bergstrom of Culver City Culver City, city (1990 pop. 38,793), Los Angeles co., S Calif., a residential suburb of Los Angeles; inc. 1917. It is a center of the U.S. motion-picture industry, whose roots in the city date to c.1915. Its chief manufactures are rubber products and computers.  as she was enjoying Venice Beach with her 5-year-old son, Eric, and 3-year-old daughter, Courtney. ``I would choose a beach that had that,'' she said.

Citing the Oceanside murder, Bergstrom said she won't let Eric go Eric Go (born January 12, 1984) is a male badminton player from the United States, of Filipino descent. Early life
Go has been the best badminton player for his age in the United States.
 into a men's room alone.

The family restroom has made some headway in the private sector - they are planned in the new Staples Center downtown, for example, Santana said - but are a new concept for county facilities.

CAPTION(S):

Photo

PHOTO Park and beach bathrooms, such as this one at Venice Beach, could someday be converted to private ``family restrooms.''

David Sprague/Staff Photographer
COPYRIGHT 1999 Daily News
No portion of this article can be reproduced without the express written permission from the copyright holder.
Copyright 1999, Gale Group. All rights reserved. Gale Group is a Thomson Corporation Company.

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Publication:Daily News (Los Angeles, CA)
Date:Jul 27, 1999
Words:576
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