By Nina Novak
Two and a half years ago, a health crisis left Avram Goldstein in a wheelchair. A retired Stanford professor, Goldstein was accustomed to free reign around his house. But when an operation left him unable to walk, even the simplest chore became a challenge.
A sudden illness or accident can leave once able-bodied adults stranded in their own homes, unable to walk upstairs, reach a high countertop or cabinet, or cross the threshold of their own front door. Suddenly, what once was a familiar haven of comfort and convenience becomes a hostile environment. Everyday activities like bathing and cooking become arduous, and sometimes impossible, tasks.
Enter The Accessibility Contractor Inc., a San Mateo-based consulting firm, specializing in home modification.
“It was a complete remodel,” said Goldstein, who hired the firm to make his bathroom more accessible. “They turned it into a place where a wheelchair could roll in for a shower, and where the shower would be a part of the room.”
The Accessibility Contractor installed an overhead shower in the center of the ceiling, with a water drain built into the middle of the floor. Because the shower spray would no longer be contained within a stall or tub with curtain, the entire space was converted into a wet room, with moisture-resistant cabinetry. The new space also leaves plenty of room for a home health-care worker to help with showering.
According to owner Russell Kennefick, his firm, which handles everything from kitchen remodels to whole-house renovations, is one of only a handful in the Bay Area to specialize in universal design, which emphasizes home safety and comfort for people of all ages, sizes and health conditions.
“We combine accessibility with ability,” said Kennefick, a contractor for more than 30 years who became certified in home modification in 1996. Most of his customers, he said, contact him after becoming disabled in accidents or due to a progressively debilitating disease.
While most homes are constructed with the average, able-bodied user in mind, homes built according to universal design principles specialize in user-friendly features. Lowered cabinets and countertops provide easier access to items on shelves, oven doors that swing open from the side rather than top to bottom allow wheelchair users to cook safely, and levered door handles give a firmer grip for arthritic hands than round doorknobs. Other key features include external and internal wheelchair lifts, sloped grades and ramps for easy entrance, roll-out drawers, grab bars in tubs and showers, raised toilets, nonskid flooring, front doors free of threshold bumps and widened doorways. More extensive modifications can include adding on a ground-floor bathroom or bedroom.
Although universal design is only beginning to emerge as a niche in the home construction and remodeling markets, some experts predict that as the baby-boomer generation enters retirement age, demand for home modification will grow.
According to a recent AARP (American Association of Retired Persons) housing survey, 83 percent of older Americans want to stay in their current homes for the rest of their lives. But for them to do so, their immediate surroundings will need to accommodate their changing physical needs, said Dory Sabata, a gerontologist and program specialist at the National Resource Center on Supportive Housing and Home Modification at the University of Southern California.
“People fall more often inside than outside the home,” said Sabata. Home modification can help create a safer living environment.
Kennefick said his company handles 20 to 25 projects a year. Bathroom remodels are most common, averaging $2,500 to $3,500 per job. Some kitchen remodels can run $55,000 and more. He starts each project with an in-person assessment, then provides a written evaluation and cost estimate within a week. The company’s annual sales range from $500,000 to $700,000.
What started as a booming business is now a harder sell, partly because of the current economic slump, but also because many consumers are not aware universal design options exist, or that they can be just as stylish and attractive as standard remodels.
“A lot of people think universal design will give their homes a cold, institutional look,” said Kennefick, who avoids using medical-supply products and hospital-like chrome finishes, opting instead for high-end, coordinated fixtures in the latest styles and colors. “They don’t know it can be done aesthetically to tie in nicely with the rest of the home.”
The Accessibility Contractor Inc., is located at 1040 South Claremont St., San Mateo, 347-0934.
