Home is where the heart is

Home is where the heart is: How a simple concept – visitability — can build a stronger community…

My home is wheelchair accessible only because I use a wheelchair.  When I visit my four siblings scattered throughout the Twin Cities, or their adult children, or travel to my family who live in Las Vegas and Phoenix, I lose a chunk of my independence because to get into their homes I must use my manual wheelchair instead of my power wheelchair.  My manual chair is lightweight and folds to bit in a car trunk. It’s also easier to lift up and down stairs, so for family visits it’s what I use.

Lifting me and my wheelchair was not always such a big deal; when I was young so were my family members who did the lifting.  But, we’re all older now and home visits have become more of a challenge due to age and health issues. The past few holiday seasons the Warner kids have done our holiday get-together over brunch at a public, accessible restaurant.  While this is easier, I miss the connection and intimacy visiting another person’s home brings.

Visitability is a simple concept that few people know about.  In most cities, the laws that apply to public places do not apply to single-family homes. The first visitability community standards were passed in Atlanta in 1992. In my research, I learned that Atlanta was the first in the nation because Eleanor Smith, a woman with a disability, created an organization called Concrete Change after the local Habitat for Humanity built hundreds of fabulous, unvisitable homes.  She took on Habitat Atlanta and now the group builds only visitable homes. She then convinced the county to pass the first visitability standards. It wasn’t all peaches and cream.  Atlanta’s housing commissioner did not agree with the new law and so didn’t enforce it.  But, a few years later brought a new commissioner who did enforce visitability standards. The result is today Atlanta has more than 600 visitable homes in all price ranges.

So what makes a home visitable?

• A zero-step entry
• At least a 32-inch wide passage door
• At least a half bath (toilet) on the main level
• My personal addition: a bathroom that allows a person in a wheelchair to wheel into AND close the bathroom door.

Money, you say.  We don’t have the resources to make this happen, especially in this economy.  Well, according to Concrete Change, visitability adds nothing to just a few hundred dollars extra to the cost of building a new home.  New thinking and breaking old design habits is the key, not money. To truly succeed, visitable communities require leadership, education, partnerships with government and local housing agencies, incentives and enforcement.

We’re not getting any younger.  Aging-in-place and visitability are issues that can positively change our communities for future generations.  AARP is on board, endorsing Smith’s Concrete Change to its members.

My challenge to you is to look at your own home and see how visitable it is.  Ask yourself:  If you or a family member became disabled tomorrow and needed to use a wheelchair, how easily could you do so in your current home?  What if you had a friend or coworker you wanted to invite to join you for a holiday gathering. Could they?  Finally, what steps can you take to ensure your community knows about and embraces visitability standards?

Resource links:
http://www.ap.buffalo.edu/idea/Visitability/
http://rtc.ruralinstitute.umt.edu/IL/RuralFacts/Visitability.htm
http://www.concretechange.org/
http://www.npr.org/news/specials/housingfirst/whoneeds/visitability.html