General Interest Articles

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Index

Page 1

• Introduction
• Universal Design

Page 2

• Adaptive Design at South Mall Towers
• Design features
• Kitchens and bathrooms
• Lighting
• Communication and control

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ADAPTIVE DESIGN AT SOUTH MALL TOWERS

Dr. David Hornick is an Albany area physician and home care advocate. To him, one of the greatest advantages of universal design is its benefit to the elderly, which most of us will become. "By enabling and prolonging independence, these design principles reduce or delay the need for home care and institutionalization, both of which are very costly," he maintains. "Costs to society are decreased, even as the preference of the elderly to stay home can more often be honored." Dr. Hornick is also the president of the Capital Area Consortium on Aging and Disability (CACAD), a not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting the health, independence, and dignity of the elderly and disabled.

Dr. Hornick, Dick Mattox (immediate past president), and others at CACAD have worked closely with Timothy Dormady, the Executive Director of South Mall Towers, to retrofit six apartments in Dormady's "Section 236" senior housing complex. These apartments, made ready for occupancy last September, are prototypes of state-of-the-art, adaptive design.

The four-year project, initiated by CACAD, involved the input, participation, and support of several city departments, several state agencies, the Stratton Medical Center, the Albany Medical College, the Visiting Nurses Association, and the Lighting Research Center of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Designs were drawn by David Sadowsky (Energy Conscious Design of Petersburg) in collaboration with the Center for Universal Design at North Carolina State University.

DESIGN FEATURES

The entryways to these apartments have been fitted with inexpensive automatic openers. From inside, a large push-button controls them. From outside, they are opened with a programmable keypad. The slightest resistance will stop the door's motion in mid-swing. Power outage results in doors that operate manually. A second peep-hole is positioned for wheelchair users. Emergency pull-cords located throughout the apartments automatically unlock the door at the same time that they alert staff to a problem.

Doors throughout the units have lever handles rather than doorknobs, door-pulls on the hinged side to aid those in wheelchairs, and kickplates high enough to intercept the leg-rest extension of a wheelchair. Track doors that fold flush to the walls are employed for closets.

Other general features include closets that are wheelchair-accessible and equipped with adjustable shelving or poles; laminate wall finishing, chair-rail, and corner guards, all able to withstand sideswiping by wheelchairs or walking aids; tinted, easy-to-use, awning or casement windows; and low-pile carpeting suitable for wheelchair traverse.

KITCHENS AND BATHROOMS

Kitchens feature side-by-side refrigerators with bottom freezers, and side-opening ovens. Appliances and cooktop hobs, along with their control panels, are placed with consideration of both standing and seated users. Cabinets have large grab handles. Drawers have cut-out sides facilitating use by those in wheelchairs.

Most innovative of all, selected counters (and the appliances and controls mounted with them, including sinks) can be adjusted up or down on vertical tracks. These counters also permit "roll-under" access. Sinks feature offset drains for roll-under close approach. Cabinet and drawer units have overhangs high and deep enough to accommodate wheelchair leg-rests in the recesses.

Bathrooms contain strategically located grab rails, some of which swing away if not in use. The sinks overhang roll-under counters. Mirrors adjust for persons of any height. Manufactured tub/shower units contain built-in grab bars, benches, adjustable shower heads, antiscald levered faucets, and removable sections (dams) that permit easy transfer from wheelchair to tub-bench. A ceiling rail has been installed for lift transfers should they be required.

LIGHTING

Lighting in these apartments is the single most striking feature to the visitor. Designed by The Lighting Research Center of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the lighting is pleasant and appropriate for the young as well as the elderly. As eyes age, stronger lighting, better contrast, and less glare are required. The overall effect in these apartments is that of being able to see everything well, but without any harshness.

Walls are light-colored, floors darker. Baseboards, rails, and countertops are all marked by contrasts meant to readily show edges and corners. Except where dimmers are installed (such as over the dining table), small-diameter, triphosphor "T8" fluorescent lamps are used. These lamps are energy efficient, need replacement only infrequently, and render colors accurately. They are installed as strip lights at wall/ceiling junctures, shielded from direct view by valances. They softly and beautifully illuminate both ceiling and wall, indirectly lighting the entire space. When installed over work areas, "stack light" fixtures equipped with numerous small baffles also prevent any direct view of the florescent tubes.

Under-counter lights are turned backward, and mounted at the forward edge of the overhead cabinets, rather than against the wall. This simple, if unconventional, placement better illuminates the actual workspaces and completely eliminates countertop glare, even at wheelchair height.

In selected locations, such as closets, motion sensors switch the lights on. After a few moments an adjustable timer turns them off when motion ceases.

COMMUNICATION AND CONTROL

Still under development at South Mall Towers are computer-aided switching and communications systems. Interlinking environmental controls will allow fingertip or voice command of light, heat, security, and entertainment facilities. Already in place are two-way intercoms, emergency pull-cords, and fire alarms equipped with both sirens and strobe lights.

Most interesting of all, CACAD and South Mall Towers are developing a prototype "telemedicine" system. This system will provide two-way video-conferencing and data transmission. Essentially it will enable an offsite physician, perhaps with the assistance of an onsite nurse or paramedic, to see, hear, and examine a patient remotely. Medical data, such as blood pressure readings, can also be transmitted to the offsite clinics.

According to Dr. Hornick, "South Mall Towers will provide a laboratory to examine whether universal design and tele-healthcare can provide a genuine, but less costly, alternative for long-term care." The telemedicine project is being done in cooperation with the Stratton Medical Center and the Albany Medical College.

[Originally published Summer 1996.]

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