Hello,
Another difficulty comes when it is time to sale your home. The
average home buyer wants the average design feathers and not
counters 30inches off the ground. My husband and I decided that
when we replaced the kitchen units we would only take the leg off
the units (Yet it's still isn't low enough for me but perfect for my
husband.) and save them so that the counters can be raised with
little problems once a new owner has purchased the house or we
can replace them before we sale.
It would be great if you could go to the Estates agent and tell them
to add your home to a list of accessible homes which had
categories such as "Homes for people of short stature." I know that
there is a project out there on the EQUAL Initiative looking at this
idea. If that project is successful I wonder if this should be a service
that most agencies should offer?
Jude
Send reply to: "Adrian Higginbotham" <[log in to unmask]>
Date sent: Wed, 12 Jul 2000 12:16:23 +0100
Organization: University of Salford
Subject: Re: access not accessible
From: "Adrian Higginbotham" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
interesting question Jude,
I guess at its most basic it comes down to
"is there such a thing as Universal Design?"
As a totally blind person a "access feature" that I find makes my life more
difficult is dropped curbs.
A step is a good way to know that you are passing from one area or
environment to another, be it pavement to road or in passing from one part
of a building to another, it gives the long cane user a distinct physical
referenc epoint and to a guide dog represents a change and therefore a
reason to stop.
Of course in this case the advantage of the dropped curb to a person with
mobility problems be they on foot or wheels far outweighs the disadvantage
to a visually impaired person and is therefore a positive desirable feature
of the built environment.
in the example you use of your kitchen work-tops the advantage to you is
obviously considerable and is a disadvantage to almost no one is it is
within your home. Taken away from the home the low worktops become a
disadvantage to more people than they advantage but that doesn't of course
mean they should be done away with altogether. This is easy some high
worktops some lower ones.
fI'm sure though that the solution isn't always that easy and would be
interested to hear from others of cases where the line between advantage and
disadvantage is harder to bridge.
Adrian Higginbotham.
SURFACE (Salford University, Research Focus on Accessible Environments).
tel: (44_-161-2953949,
fax (44)-161-2955011,
textphone (44)-161-2953599.
web: http://www.scpm.salford.ac.uk/surface/
Judith M. Irving BSc Arch.Envir.
Research / PhD Student
S U R F A C E
Salford University Research Focus on AcCessible Environments
Bridgewater Building
Salford University
Salford, M7 9NU
England
Tel:0161-295-3194
http://www.scpm.salford.ac.uk/surface
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