What does Metro require for event restrooms?

Step one: does the event need the special event permit?

Metro says a permit is generally required for an event with street closures, sales, large tents or portable toilets for public use, including festivals and concerts.

Any one of those triggers can be enough. An event with portable toilets for public use needs the permit even if it has no closure, so the restroom plan can bring the permit requirement with it.

The organizer should go through the list on Metro's page and mark which items apply to the event. A single yes is reason to ask the office for the requirement in writing.

A small private gathering on private ground is a different case. The owner's consent and the count are the main questions, but the public-use test is the one to check.

• Street closures
• Sales
• Large tents
• Portable toilets for public use
• Festivals and concerts

Step two: which office handles the permit?

The Office of Film and Special Events handles permitting for events in Davidson County. Parks land, closures and other public spaces can also involve separate Metro offices for their own part.

The office's current requirements should be confirmed before the plan is final, because the forms and the timing can change. This page does not restate the deadlines, since the source does not set them out in a current form.

An event that spans a Metro park and a closed street may need the office's approval plus the park's own application for the lawn.

Step three: the layout map

The application asks for a layout map showing portable toilets, tents, ramps and companion seating.

The map is the reviewer's main picture of the event. The units should be shown as clusters with their counts, the accessible units with their routes, and the companion seating beside the accessible route.

The map should also show the entrances, the stages and the emergency access, so the reviewer can check the restroom placement against the rest of the site.

A clean legend and a scale bar help. A map that the reviewer can read without a question is more likely to be approved the first time.

Step four: insurance for a Metro park

Metro Parks' special events application asks for a certificate of insurance when an event adds portable restrooms to a park. The organizer provides the certificate.

The application for an event at Warner Park is the example in the search result, and it asked for the certificate to accompany the filing. The insurance covers the event, and the organizer holds it.

A portable toilet provider's own insurance does not replace the certificate the Parks office asks for, so the two should be checked separately. The organizer should ask the office for the wording and limits it needs.

Step five: the accessible share in the application

Metro's special event application sets at least 5% of the portable toilets provided as accessible, rounded up to a whole number, on a form dated 2017.

The example on the form is 25 units with a minimum of two accessible units. The count on the plan should match the arithmetic on the form.

The form is dated 2017 in the search result, so the office should confirm the current form before the plan is filed.

Step six: check the file and the timing

Confirm the current timing with the office, file the permit and the layout map together, and keep a copy of every approval with the event team for the day.

A late filing can delay the event or change its layout. The restroom plan is one of the items reviewers ask about first, so it should be settled before the application is complete.

Keep the approved permit and the layout map on site for the event. Stewards and inspectors may ask for them.

Step seven: what does a reviewer look for first?

A reviewer looks for the units on the layout map, the accessible units on firm routes, the emergency access left open and the paperwork matching the count. Each of those can be checked from the plan without a site visit.

The first check is whether the restroom units appear on the map at all. A map that shows tents and stages but not the clusters invites a request for a revision and a delay.

The second check is the accessible count against the form's share, rounded up. The third is the route to each accessible unit, drawn from the nearest path, so the reviewer can see it is usable.

A short covering note with the plan states the total count, the accessible count and the servicing plan. A note of that kind saves a round of questions.

Step eight: what if the event is outside Metro's limits?

An event on a line between Metro and a neighboring town or county is filed with each office that governs its part. The towns around Nashville, including Brentwood, Goodlettsville and Hendersonville, set their own permits.

The parcel decides the jurisdiction, and the provider confirms it before the booking. A Metro permit does not cover a spot in a neighboring town, and a town permit does not cover a spot in Metro.

Each town's office is asked what it requires for portable toilets, how far ahead the plan must be filed and whether it has a separate accessible condition.

Step nine: keep the file for the day

Keep the approved permit, the layout map, the insurance certificate where a Metro park is used, and the servicing schedule with the event team on site.

Inspectors and stewards may ask for any of these on the day, and a paper copy is quicker to find than an email.

After the event the file is kept for a short time, so questions about the units and the count can be answered without a search.

What is the timing for filing?

This page does not set out the timing, because the current requirement is for the Office of Film and Special Events to confirm. An organizer should ask the office for its filing deadline in writing and plan the layout map and the insurance around that date.

A late application can delay the event, and the layout map is often the item that holds the file up. Start the map early and send it with the application, not after it.

For a park event, the insurance certificate is part of the same filing, so the broker's timing should be checked against the deadline as well.

What happens if the office asks for a change?

The office's request is answered in writing, the layout map is revised, and the revised map is filed again with the changes marked. A change to the count is confirmed with the provider at the same time.

A revised map that marks the changes saves the reviewer time. An unmarked map forces a full re-read, which can delay the approval.

Keep both versions in the file, so the event team can see what was asked and what was answered.