Can I construct a UNISEX bathroom with Shower at my new commercial property?
I just bought a free-standing professional office, and I'm gutting it and turning it into a full fledged (mostly private) recording studio.

I'm in Southwest Florida.

My Studio designer keeps citing the Americans With Disabilities act, and I assume he knows what he's talking about...

Figured I'd still come here and ask the experts.
[{"id": "d689dqh", "text": "I believe it would need to be a single-person bathroom (one toilet, one shower stall, one sink, etc).\n", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "d68w56k", "text": "Check your local building code. It's going to depend on the use and number of people / size of your space what is required. Also worth noting that full ADA compliance often has VERY specific rules, like the exact heights of grab bars, etc.", "replies": [], "depth": 1}, {"id": "d68wa4d", "text": "Hm, interesting.\n\nAround here I see them all the time... Last night I was at a mid-upscale restaurant that had 3 bathrooms. Two of them were unisex, with one toilet and one sink. The third bathroom was strictly a dedicated handicap bathroom.\n\nI'm wondering if I can get away with this by doing one unisex bathroom, and an additional small handicap bathroom.\n\nWho does someone contact to obtain this type of information? A lawyer? The city? Online resources? I can't seem to figure this one out!", "replies": [{"id": "d692ffy", "text": "Speak to a lawyer about this that does real estate/zoning/land use etc. Are you going to ever be selling this? Renting it out to other companies on a long term basis? I would think the smart thing to do is to have three restrooms - M/W/Unisex handicap. If you bought this as an investment, you don't want to do anything that will hurt resale value. \n\nYou may not be subject to the PPACA, but breastfeeding women have certain protections under that, including employers being required to provide \"a place, other than a bathroom, that is shielded from view and free from intrusion from coworkers and the public, which may be used by an employee to express breast milk.\"   \n\nI would put money on that being expanded rather than restricted, so you may want to even include something of that sort, and then you can market under PPACA compliance. Obviously this depends upon your spending threshold.", "replies": [{"id": "d693d9m", "text": "I've been trying to reach out to my lawyer who handled the title work for a while now but with no results. Becoming really aggravating to be honest.\n\nDoes anyone know which city official I would contact for this?\n\nIf I posted up some details like the zoning/building code could you provide further advice?\n\nThis space is literally going to be as private as it gets.\n\n2500 sq ft, 2 music studios inside, oversized lounge, office, assistant room, bedroom, lobby, server room, etc.\n\nI bought the property and do not plan to lease it out. I'm literally gutting the place and putting a lot of money in there. (approx $200k in renovations)\n\nMy guess would be when/if I sell it, I'll be at a loss for the majority of renovations I've done, but I've accepted this. This place literally needs to be my creative sanctuary for the next several years...\n\nAny help on this would be greatly appreciated. I've been delaying the design/construction on this issue and simply cannot find answers through researching. Perhaps I am incompetent. :D", "replies": [{"id": "d69l9hv", "text": "Do you have a general contractor? They should be able to get all of this sorted for you, as they should be able to cover a lot of this. Honestly, talk to a contractor or an architect. ", "replies": [{"id": "d69n727", "text": "The studio is still in design phase by \"the architect\".\n\nWhat I need to do is consult a local architect, as I've already exhausted every other possibility. \n\nShould have word on that by tomorrow since my attorney finally decided to return my call.\n\nMy attorneys first interpretation is that I can make the bathroom however I want, converge the male and female bathroom from the initial plans, make it into a modern palace of a bathroom with a dope shower, and as long as there is handicap compliant accessibility within I'm thinking it may be fine...\n\nWill wait to hear back from the local architect tomorrow... Hoping for results. My Studio designer isn't from this state so he's not 100% on top of state law.\n\nAlso, it's worthy to mention that construction has yet to begin. The studio design process in an of itself because of the complexity, acoustics, etc., is 3 months alone... Then estimated construction time is 6-9 months.\n\nI've just been hung up on this damn bathroom situation because each serious revision I give my studio designer is going to cost me $.\n\n", "replies": [{"id": "d69u9ck", "text": "I can't do better than your own attorney, especially without knowing your city and your state. And even then, it's unlikely that you are in a state in which I am licensed. ", "replies": [], "depth": 6}, {"id": "d6dooed", "text": "If there isn't much public use you should be able to get away with more. \n  \nHere is the general ADA code. Your state may have more specific requirements. \n\n213.2 Toilet Rooms and Bathing Rooms. Where toilet rooms are provided, each toilet room shall\ncomply with 603. Where bathing rooms are provided, each bathing room shall comply with 603.\nEXCEPTIONS: 1. In alterations where it is technically infeasible to comply with 603, altering\nexisting toilet or bathing rooms shall not be required where a single unisex toilet room or bathing\nroom complying with 213.2.1 is provided and located in the same area and on the same floor as\nexisting inaccessible toilet or bathing rooms.\n \n2. Where exceptions for alterations to qualified historic buildings or facilities are permitted by 202.5,\nno fewer than one toilet room for each sex complying with 603 or one unisex toilet room complying\nwith 213.2.1 shall be provided.\n \n3. Where multiple single user portable toilet or bathing units are clustered at a single location, no\nmore than 5 percent of the toilet units and bathing units at each cluster shall be required to comply\nwith 603. Portable toilet units and bathing units complying with 603 shall be identified by the\nInternational Symbol of Accessibility complying with 703.7.2.1.\n \n4. Where multiple single user toilet rooms are clustered at a single location, no more than 50 percent\nof the single user toilet rooms for each use at each cluster shall be required to comply with 603.\n \nAdvisory 213.2 Toilet Rooms and Bathing Rooms. These requirements allow the use of\nunisex (or single-user) toilet rooms in alterations when technical infeasibility can be\ndemonstrated. Unisex toilet rooms benefit people who use opposite sex personal care\nassistants. For this reason, it is advantageous to install unisex toilet rooms in addition to\naccessible single-sex toilet rooms in new facilities.\n\nAdvisory 213.2 Toilet Rooms and Bathing Rooms Exceptions 3 and 4. A \u201ccluster\u201d is a\ngroup of toilet rooms proximate to one another. Generally, toilet rooms in a cluster are within\nsight of, or adjacent to, one another.\n  \n**213.2.1 Unisex (Single-Use or Family) Toilet and Unisex Bathing Rooms. Unisex toilet rooms\nshall contain not more than one lavatory, and two water closets without urinals or one water closet\nand one urinal. Unisex bathing rooms shall contain one shower or one shower and one bathtub, one\nlavatory, and one water closet. Doors to unisex toilet rooms and unisex bathing rooms shall have\nprivacy latches.**", "replies": [], "depth": 6}], "depth": 5}], "depth": 4}], "depth": 3}], "depth": 2}], "depth": 1}]