Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Universal Design

[lilbert (lilbert]

My friend and neighbor wrote this to our internal email list. I hope it is
food for thought fo those of you who think it costs too much to make
accessability a priority. What might it cost otherwise?




Accessibility issues in cohousing

By Susan Barnhill

When I joined the downtown Sacramento Southside Park Cohousing group (SSPC),
I tried to convince people that they should make the ground floor wheelchair
accessible.  As a permanent wheelchair user, I have no choice about stairs.
Their  justification for the stairs was that the townhouse units are so
close to the street and to each other that they need to be up off the ground
so that they have more privacy.

The federal Fair Housing Act states that, if federal money is involved,
units of more than 3 must be ground floor accessible, unless they are town
houses!  Bummer, my unit is the bottom floor flat of an old restored
Victorian.

SSPC countered that they would make a portable ramp so that I could get into
people's houses.  They didn't realize that for 3, 8"  steps it would take
about a 20' ramp.  They really didn't get it and so there are stairs to all
but one other unit and it has a 4" threshold so that I need a bit of a boost
to get into the  place.

The effect that this has had on me is that I am unable to make a casual,
spur of the moment visit, nor am I able to put something by their doors or
get their attention except by calling them up to come out to meet me.  I can
see them at the Common House during a meal or meeting, or I can put stuff in
their cubbies, or if they happen to come in when I am there.

In other words I don't feel included lost of times.  I don't get tp go over
to people's homes very often.  I have gone a few times and they just haul me
up the stairs. I know they like me but I just feel that I am isolated,
sometimes left out of the loop.

I choose to live here anyway because I like the people and the meals and the
interaction and support I get here.  Where else can you have a house and not
worry about getting the grass mowed, house painted, gutters cleaned, etc.
Be able to get help at a moment's notice or get someone to go to the movies,
a ride to the hospital, someone to bring you a meal or visit or help out
when you don't feel well, etc.

Too bad they didn't listen to me, Atlanta and some other cities have now
adopted a "visitability" ordinance.  This means that all new housing is
ground floor accesssible so that anyone may visit anyone else.  Also in Muir
Commons all units are ground floor accessible as they had a child in the
group who uses a chair.  Of course they have more space and their
development is more rural.

I feel that this concept of visitability is one we should all adopt
wholeheartedly.  Who knows when you will become disabled (either permanantly
or temporarily) or when your parents will have to move in with you and they
can't do stairs.  (All of our units have a bathroom and some have bedrooms
on the ground floor.)

If I had to do it all over again I would insist on ground floor
accessibility.