LAKELAND, Fla. – Merely a pipe dream for the past 18 years, The Villages at Noah’s Landing is nearing completion. Quaint, colorful and secluded on 56 acres of semi-wooded prime real estate on Lake Crago in north Lakeland, the residential community for people with developmental or intellectual disabilities is unique for Polk County and a rarity throughout the nation.
Universal Design (UD) is an approach to design that increases the potential for developing a better quality of life for a wide range of individuals. It is a design process that enables and empowers a diverse population by improving human performance, health and wellness, and social participation (Steinfeld and Maisel, 2012). It creates products, systems, and environments to be as usable as possible by as many people as possible regardless of age, ability or situation.
