Universal design workshop full of good ideas

I spent a couple hours recently at a workshop on accessible home design and remodeling sponsored by the Disability Network of Northern Michigan. Builder Sally Erickson Bornschein and realtor Lou Anne Ford had solid suggestions for making places more livable, more visitable, and more salable for a relatively small investment:

Improve lighting. Countertop lighting makes it easier to work in the kitchen, and a good reading lamp is always welcome. Lou Anne recommended solar tubes to brighten a dark interior with natural light. Sally recommended soft night-lighting in halls and baths. ”Most falls in the home occur while leaving the bathroom,” she said. “When you get up in the night your eyes are dilated. Then you flip the bathroom switch and POW – bright light smacks you in the face. Just about the time your eyes have adjusted to that, you’re ready to go back to bed. You turn off the light as you leave, and all of a sudden you’re blind!”
Install a handheld adjustable showerhead and a bench seat. These features offer spa luxury on a modest budget. They’re great for shaving your legs — and great for bathing the dogs! (When this gets around I’ll never have weekend guests again, huh?)
Install grab bars in the bathroom. There are some beautifully designed ones that make great towel bars when they’re not needed for support. Make sure to reinforce the walls, or the bars can pull out.
Use color and texture to give definition to spaces and changes in surfaces. Wall and trim paint and matte finishes for plumbing fixtures help – and these finishes are easier to keep clean, too.
Replace twist knobs with lever styles. They’re easier to use, whether you have arthritis or an armload of groceries.
Build a simple package shelf by the entry. How often have you fumbled for your house keys while juggling the drycleaning and a carryout pizza?

Sally Erickson Bornschein is a universal design advocate whose Livable Lifestyles model home was featured at the 2007 National Governors Conference in Traverse City. Lou Anne Ford is a registered nurse as well as a Realtor, and is a Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES). She helps people find housing suited to changing needs, and also helps clients plan modifications that allow them to stay in their homes.