All of the Ralphs near me (South OC) received keypads circa 2019 and were subsequently locked but today it's a mixed bag between stores that lock their restrooms and stores that don't. And Ralphs isn't the only retailer to start locking its restrooms.storewanderer wrote: ↑November 30th, 2021, 12:28 amHave not found this to be the case up around Santa Barbara/SLO area, Orange County or San Diego as a rule but only as an exception... can think of a few examples like the Albertsons in Downtown San Diego that have been locked for years, or the Ralphs in Downtown Los Angeles...
Can't speak for F&E in SoCal but they were not locked in NorCal.
The restrooms are more trashed today than ever before. For example, In the mens room, I've seen occasions where people have defecated on the floor, urinal, sink, etc. They look like inner-city restrooms... problems that didn't exist before. Probably an increase in homeless, theft, etc. also contribute.