Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Universal Design and Co-housing

[David Hornick (dhornick]

It's good to see attention paid to visitability.  It is a good first step.
Yet, visitability and useability are two different issues.

I'd be interested to know if anyone has employed "Universal Design"
principles in co-housing?

Universal design is defined (by Ron Mace - now deceased) as "...design of as
much of the environment as possible to be as useable as possible by as many
people as possible".

Universal design provides for adjustments to the living environment to
accommodate functional differences and functional change.  It enables a
person in a wheelchair or a small child to share and function in the same
environment as a fully physically functioning adult.  A few simple examples:
    Side by side refrigerator
    Sink and stovetop whose height adjusts quickly to to all.
    Wide doorways
    Light switches at 3 feet height instead of 4 feet or more
    Large bathrooms and kitchens to accommodate wheelchair turning radius
    Shower rooms instead of shower stalls or bathtub showers
    "Smart Home" technology
    Landscaping that substitutes gentle slopes for steps.
    Lighting that is as friendly to  aged eyes as to younger eyes.

It is these design considerations that permit  people to remain in their
homes despite changes in functional capacity.  Universal Design done well
permits multifunctional families to function together in a shared living
space.

If Universal Design were applied to all housing, every house would be
useable to most people regardless of functional status.

If universal design has not penetrated the co-housing movement, why not?

David Hornick




> 
> Jill,
> You may add Cambridge Cohousing (MA) to your list.
> 
> Of our 41 units, all but 4 are visitable by someone in a wheelchair or
> scooter.  The additional 4 units (stack flats) are visitable if the person
> can use a stairchair.    12 units are townhouses in which each 1st floor is
> visitable.  All other flats and most common areas are in our common house
> serviced by an elevator.  All common spaces are accessible to all.
> 
> Peg Blum
> 
> pegb [at] cambridgecohousing.org
> http://www.cambridgecohousing.org
> 
> 
>> 
>>  From what I've seen, there is not much access at most cohos.
>> 
> 
>> East Lake Commons in Atlanta,
>> Swan Market in Oakland.
>> Takoma Village in DC, and
>> Cornerstone in Boston.
>> 
>> Eno Commons in Durham has a few accessible units and one level of the
>> common house is accessible.
>> 
>> I hope others will post additions to the list of accessible cohos
>> (meaning access to all common spaces and visitability in all units) .
>> 
>> 
> 
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