The Coming Decade for Residential Design
In the AIA’s Home Design Trends Survey, leading residential architecture firms provided their vision for the next 10 years in terms of home layout; features, systems, and products; neighborhood and community design; and kitchens and baths. The key trends that they identified are the growing popularity of universal design; increased attention to a healthy living […]
Universal design: going beyond ADA requirements
According to U.S. Census Bureau figures, about one in seven Americans is disabled. That number is likely to increase significantly in the next 30 years, as the population of baby boomers continues to grow. With the increasing number of individuals suffering from serious physical limitations, it is becoming more important for facilities to be designed […]
Demand for Home Health Technology on the Rise
Builders and remodelers should expect a rise in demand for home health technology as more and more boomers retire. According to AARP, the majority of adult children (88%) and older adults (75%) spend time thinking about [parental] aging, and what that may mean for the family. However, 75% of adult children and 69% of aging parents […]
Mother Knows Best
Most Americans will be aging-in-place by choice or necessity according to a National Survey on Housing and Home Modification Issues conducted by AARP. [1] The Administration on Aging reported that 28% of older Americans in 2012 lived alone and among women aged 75 and over almost half lived alone.
25 years after landmark Americans With Disabilities Act
Universal design for the less-able
The term “universal design” has made its way into the industry recently, but what does it really mean and how will it impact on design? Universal design allows everyone, to the greatest extent possible and regardless of age or disability, to use buildings without the need for specialised or adapted features.
UB IDeA Center receives $4.6 million federal grant
The University at Buffalo’s Center for Inclusive Design and Environmental Access (IDeA Center) has received a fourth round of federal funding to continue its work on a wide range of universal design projects. Read More >>
Disabilities and public housing: A closer look
Almost two out of every five working-age (age 25 to 61) public housing residents report having a disability, compared with about 1 out of 10 (11 percent) of the entire working-age population nationally. With the growing emphasis on public housing programming on self-sufficiency, service coordination, and supportive services, we need to know more about this […]
Be the Solution: A Universal Design Primer
This project room features work surfaces with knee space below, a clear circulation path, a floor free of area rugs and other obstructions, and plenty of natural light.
Housing Design and Play: Exploring the links
In October last year I embarked upon a study with my architecture post-graduate students at University of East London. In the masters unit that I run, I am interested in the design of external spaces in housing developments, specifically in relation to play. I want to know whether particular layouts encourage play and whether we […]