Locked Bathrooms, Open Bladders: A Streator Tradition

It’s baseball season in Streator. The kids are lacing up their cleats, the parents are hauling folding chairs, and the city—well, the city is locking the bathrooms.

At James Street Park, frustrated parents are once again raising a simple, pressing question: Why are the restrooms always locked when the parks are in full swing?

“Here with the kids for baseball practice at James St. Park,” wrote Katie Gallup. “Wondering why the bathrooms always have to be locked? Hard to bring little kids to the park when all the restrooms are constantly locked.”

And if you think it’s just a minor inconvenience, consider this:

“It just makes it hard when there [are] all these little kids out here tryin’ to play ball and nowhere to go to the bathroom.”

In response, the community has weighed in with solutions ranging from the reasonable to the nostalgic to the vaguely apocalyptic.

“Because the ‘big kids’ in town like to ruin it,” said Melissa DuPree.
“Go old school Murphy’s,” suggested Donald Horton Jr. “Cost you .10 to use the bathroom.”
“Not too many juveniles riding around with ten cents in their pockets,” he added.
“Nope… just their phones,” replied Constance Sue.

And then, like clockwork, Brett Baumrucker showed up to offer the kind of efficiency proposal that could only come from someone who’s spent time thinking deeply about bathroom logistics:

“Every park besides Marilla and City Park should just have a porta potty unless there’s a big event.”

But he didn’t stop there.

“There are 2 porta potty’s at Spring Lake. One of those should go somewhere else. At most parks in Ottawa, they have porta potty’s. Even their City Park has porta potty’s, and they are across the street. It’s great our town has plumbing and toilets and sinks and urinals, but they should just have porta potty’s.”

It’s unclear whether this is a call for minimalism or a resignation to reality, but if nothing else, Brett continues to serve as Streator’s unofficial Facilities Efficiency Czar.

Back to solutions: some suggested letting coaches unlock and relock the doors.

“Locking it is NOT the answer,” argued Constance Sue. “Give the coaches keys so the kids can use the restroom.”
“The second they are open they will be destroyed,” countered Terry Trenor. “Maybe the coaches can have a key.”
“That’s how it should be,” added Julie Ann. “It’s a shame people like to destroy stuff.”

And for those wondering if this is a new problem? Nope.

“Those bathrooms have been locked for 2 years!” declared Anita West, like a town crier with a bladder full of receipts.

Some floated creative workarounds:

“We have been in other states with public bathrooms that have a code,” said Susan Poldek Tutko. “You have to ask a manager or a coach in this instance for the code to unlock the door.”

Others wanted accountability:

“Put up some cameras,” wrote Regina Kling. “Make them pay for damages. A real shame for the folks that don’t destroy public property.”

And then Beau Boyles cut straight to the point:

“Because scumbags destroy them if they’re not!”

With the bathrooms locked, Streator families are left to improvise, dash to Casey’s, or—as Katie put it bluntly:

“Everyone over here peeing outside.”

It’s a situation that would be funny if it weren’t so wet. As the city debates how to build a better future, maybe it could start with something simple: a bathroom door… that opens.

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The Streator Standard: Reporting from the front lines of the indoor plumbing crisis.