The Toronto Public Space Committee has launched a global design competition aimed at imagining the future of public washrooms in the city.

The global design competition invites designers, architects, urban planners, and creative thinkers from around the world to propose design ideas for inclusive and innovative public washrooms. The ideas competition aims to advocate and spread awareness for the urgent need of a robust public washroom network in Toronto.

Despite the necessity of public washrooms, the Toronto Public Space Committee notes that the city has a severe shortage, leaving many residents—particularly unhoused individuals, gig workers, families, and people with disabilities—without access to this urban infrastructure. As a result, this competition aims to emphasize the essential nature of washroom access in the city.

In this competition, entrants are being tasked to design a network of public washrooms for the City of Toronto that includes one single-user toilet washroom—designed to be flexible for installation at multiple sites—and one multi-user hub washroom sited at Dufferin King Parkette. It is seeking bold ideas that integrate spatial justice, accessibility, sustainability, and cultural inclusion