18 replies to this topic

[snowqueeneh]

Does anyone have a nice accessible apartment? We live in Ontario, Canada and it is really hard to find one. The waiting lists are huge and the apartments are not even that nice. I guess I'm just curious what would make the ultimate apartment for quads & paras? Is there even such a thing?

[Ratticis]

1 with a magic bathtub that healed wounds when you bathed in it. And fixed SCIs

[Beautiful]

I live in the USA, and the state I live in has some nice accessible apartments. My sister just moved out of one. She lived two hours away from where I live, and she got the apartment for if I visited. I only visited twice, lol. Once when I helped her move in, once when I helped her move out! The doors were wide, the bathroom was huge, the sinks were the kind you could roll under, etc.

[E-DOG]

There just ain't enough of us for anyone to bother building accessible housing.
No money in it.

[wheeliebear75]

Aside from the trouble getting under sinks MANY "regular" apartments can be made to work. What you'd be looking at is any apt. with reasonably wide doorways........bathroom doors are smaller/narrower than standard so you may have to improvise by taking the actual bathroom door off & hanging a shower curtain in it's place.......it's not as smell or sound proof but it still keeps things private enough. Just look for an apt. with no stairs, a fairly good sized sq ft & the more open floor plan the better, wide enough doors to get through. If it is a larger complex than see where that would make the mail box be.....sometimes they may have 2 identical units & if the mailbox of unit #35 is up on the top row but #45 is in the center than you'd want to pick #45 so the mail can be reached. Make sure that you wouldn't get blocked in by someone with a car or truck parked. (I lived in a small complex with 6 units, we were on the bottom so no problem there. The problem came with the parking in relation to the units, if someone parked in the closest spot & parked "normal" than I couldn't fit out of the complex til the car was moved but someone walking could get past the car sideways. We eventually solved THAT problem by having to have assigned parking so that only US & OUR friends would park there & they always parked a smidgen over so I could get out.) Make sure the laundry area is accessible if they'll be doing laundry or helping with it. If there is large lip for the front door they sell these things that go over little thresholds like a little miniature ramp (although I don't personally use them as I'm able to wheelie over smaller curbs but others on here use them so maybe someone can tell you where they got theirs from). And with a large enough bathroom you should be able to help him onto a shower chair for bathing.......just buy a shower hose with a nice long hose on it & a couple different shower settings......just to be safe. Most apt. for disabled come with a waiting list sometimes years long.......you may find making a few adjustments to a regular apt. will work our OK for you & hubby.

[guido]

E-DOG, on Nov 5 2009, 08:58 AM, said:

There just ain't enough of us for anyone to bother building accessible housing.
No money in it.

There is money in it, just very few people doing it. After I got out of Sheffield SIU, I realised that people were staying in the rehab ward for too long (at a cost of £3,000 per week) because of a shortage of suitable housing. This meant people from the acute ward were having to wait to get into rehab, and people in a general hospital couldn't get the specialist SIU care that they needed. So, with my (then) business partner, I proposed to convert some adapted apartments which could act as a medium term temporary accommodation, but no-one was interested as it was a thing of budgets.

So the thing was rents for people who were state funded and needed the help the most.

NHS weren't paying because they had enough on their plate.
Sheffield City Council weren't paying because (of how large the SIU catchment area was) it would be for people outside of Sheffield's remit
Other City Councils wouldn't pay because if it was for one of their own people, well it was in Sheffield not in their District.

So, a good idea, which would help people, ease the system, would be funded by the private sector, would earn the government tax on any profit, save the government money (£3,000 per week for a bed remember) was a non-starter as no-one wanted to talk to me, and I was advised against it. Now, I don't have the cash or time as I'm committed to other work.

Look at all the companies doing Retirement Homes. There is a profitable business model.

As with everything these days, it's a minefield of self-defeating bureaucracy and red tape, and the fact that far too many civil servants are too short sighted (can only see the end of their own nose and specific remit) and have NO idea what private sector people actually try and achieve everyday and how incredibly difficult and risky to their own finances that is.

As you can see, I feel quite strongly about this....

Now, if you want my added opinion on architecture and planning, EVERY SINGLE new home could be workable or designed to be adapted at minimal cost and effort, at minimal cost to the developer, BUT everyone is so damned IGNORANT on the issue that they miss all these wonderful opportunities, and we suffer as a result.

But one thing I can tell you is that there is MASSES of financial reward and doing it right, from the start is not more expensive, it just takes knowledge.

When something is accessible, who benefits:

- disabled, wheelchair users & immobile walkers
- parents with young children, push chairs, child clobber, etc...
- the elderly
- people with temporary injuries
- people who are fit and healthy one day and then <<POW>> stroke sufferers, SI people, etc...
- anyone fit and healthy who has anyone to stay in the above categories.

So basically most people....

Why are people so IGNORANT, LAZY, UNWILLING TO LEARN NEW STUFF

... thank you, I'm coming down off my box now....

[greybeard]

Get back up on that box Guido -- and shout LOUDER ! The message needs to be heard.

[snowqueeneh]

I agree with you Guido. We have a nice house but that is only because we have so much support from family & friends. Without them we would be homeless right now. That's why I posted this. We think about it all the time - homeless! We are anticipating a settlement one day... but who know when or how much. Till then we are broke, the system sucks etc... I'm sure you have heard it all before.

[Kernowtetra]

Guido I think you should do a business plan, get a business partner and apply for funding to get the project off the ground as it sounds as if it could fill a gap in the market.

You could also apply to go Dragon's Den to try and get one of the Dragon's to become your business partner. They and the BBC would soon get the drift of your business plan and life in general for people with a SCI especially when trying to go up the stairs to meet the Dragon's!

[The Black Sheep]

I was looking for an apartment in upstate NY back in July, and there was one that said "wheelchair access". It's the only apartment complex I've seen that 1. doesn't have stairs to the main building and 2. doesn't have the mailbox on a huge curb 4 ft. from the road.

Sadly, it still had a 24" door on the bathroom. I hate bathrooms!

My husband and I are buying our first house, a 16x70 foot mobile home, and the first thing we're doing is ripping the bathroom door off. Well, that and a ramp to the front door. But the bathroom is a close second.

[guido]

Haha! after all that agreement I can't get off the soap box fast enough!!! I'd LOVE to do it, but I don't have access to that kind of capital anymore, the market is still playing stupid buggers (let's wait until after the election and things get real) and I'm struggling for time as it is! One day.... Maybe we should start a pressure movement to architect schools showing them the ease of doing it and the advantages of doing it so it becomes a mainstream norm rather than an exception.

Education is always the thing that has the potential to create BIG change. Even if I did a project, it would be a drop in the ocean, and probably not help a single member here, but educate the architects with reason so they believe in it, and suddenly you're seeing change.

Any volunteers (preferably with architectural background) here fancy a project, world travel, no expenses paid, and a big following????

[The Black Sheep]

The biggest issue I've seen is the width of doors. Ramps and inclined sidewalks seem to be fairly standard with most new buildings (within 10-20 years), but I've always run into the doorway problem in non-commercial buildings. We had a contractor come into our office a few months back when we wanted them to build a wall between two rooms. I told him I preferred a 36" door because we have a lot of fairly large equipment going in and out (myself included) and he kept insisting we have a tiny door because they fit better. Oy. My husband ended up building the wall and door.

Is it that much to make a 32" or larger door a standard? Every time I've seen some sort of construction (in our house, for instance) when I've asked about a larger door I get "that's not our standard setup, so we don't do it."

The husband always ends up tearing something "standard" down.

guido, on Nov 5 2009, 08:05 PM, said:

Haha! after all that agreement I can't get off the soap box fast enough!!! I'd LOVE to do it, but I don't have access to that kind of capital anymore, the market is still playing stupid buggers (let's wait until after the election and things get real) and I'm struggling for time as it is! One day.... Maybe we should start a pressure movement to architect schools showing them the ease of doing it and the advantages of doing it so it becomes a mainstream norm rather than an exception.

Education is always the thing that has the potential to create BIG change. Even if I did a project, it would be a drop in the ocean, and probably not help a single member here, but educate the architects with reason so they believe in it, and suddenly you're seeing change.

Any volunteers (preferably with architectural background) here fancy a project, world travel, no expenses paid, and a big following????

I'd love to see this. Just a quick question, though. When we all go to a convention or organize a meeting, who determines the handicap parking?

[guido]

The Black Sheep, on Nov 5 2009, 08:17 PM, said:

The biggest issue I've seen is the width of doors. Ramps and inclined sidewalks seem to be fairly standard with most new buildings (within 10-20 years), but I've always run into the doorway problem in non-commercial buildings. We had a contractor come into our office a few months back when we wanted them to build a wall between two rooms. I told him I preferred a 36" door because we have a lot of fairly large equipment going in and out (myself included) and he kept insisting we have a tiny door because they fit better. Oy. My husband ended up building the wall and door.

Is it that much to make a 32" or larger door a standard? Every time I've seen some sort of construction (in our house, for instance) when I've asked about a larger door I get "that's not our standard setup, so we don't do it."

The husband always ends up tearing something "standard" down.

guido, on Nov 5 2009, 08:05 PM, said:

Haha! after all that agreement I can't get off the soap box fast enough!!! I'd LOVE to do it, but I don't have access to that kind of capital anymore, the market is still playing stupid buggers (let's wait until after the election and things get real) and I'm struggling for time as it is! One day.... Maybe we should start a pressure movement to architect schools showing them the ease of doing it and the advantages of doing it so it becomes a mainstream norm rather than an exception.

Education is always the thing that has the potential to create BIG change. Even if I did a project, it would be a drop in the ocean, and probably not help a single member here, but educate the architects with reason so they believe in it, and suddenly you're seeing change.

Any volunteers (preferably with architectural background) here fancy a project, world travel, no expenses paid, and a big following????

I'd love to see this. Just a quick question, though. When we all go to a convention or organize a meeting, who determines the handicap parking?

Very simple reasons contractors say that: they price for a job and "standard" means more profit. Putting in an extra wide job means less money for them. Always get it into the brief.

I thought you guys over the pond liked your valet parking????

[The Black Sheep]

guido, on Nov 5 2009, 09:44 PM, said:

Very simple reasons contractors say that: they price for a job and "standard" means more profit. Putting in an extra wide job means less money for them. Always get it into the brief.

I thought you guys over the pond liked your valet parking????

I'd like to see a valet figure out hand controls. I took my petals off because if I kick or spasm, well that'll just end up messy.

I think valet parking is for fancy city areas or expensive hotels. I live near neither.

[Tetracyclone]

I'm disgusted. I've been a contractor and I know contractors. Their job is to say "yes Maam", and tell you how much the 32 inch doorway will cost. But doors that slide into the wall are much better.

Pwuff

[guido]

The Black Sheep, on Nov 5 2009, 09:10 PM, said:

guido, on Nov 5 2009, 09:44 PM, said:

I thought you guys over the pond liked your valet parking????

I'd like to see a valet figure out hand controls. I took my petals off because if I kick or spasm, well that'll just end up messy.

I think valet parking is for fancy city areas or expensive hotels. I live near neither.

Yes, i had one friend stove my last car into friends camper van, which then hit the wall in front, damaging my front end, my friend's front and rear end AND the wall, which we'd just done..... And i DID have my pedals there still (he just thought he'd have a go with the hand controls for fun then got "stop" and "go" the wrong way round)!

Valet parking IS for city and fancy! And no, we haven't got it in the countryside where I live either, but you asked about parking for a big spaz conference!

And hey, Pwuff, I agree, but life and people never quite work out that way!!! I win some, I lose some: I just hope I'll keep winning more than I'll lose.

[ohio4282]

My fiance and I have started looking for a place recently. His is too small. It is basically nothing more than a studio. Or maybe even less. A kitchen, a bathroom and a very tiny bedroom. His dad built it for him. Great, but there isn't a place to sit, unless I want to park it on the toilet or on the bed. Not good for long term.

My apartment sort of works. But there are two steps to get into the front door (luckily, I'm on the bottom floor of a three story unit), and I have to drag him up and down every time he comes over. I've tipped him out of his chair a couple of times. The bathroom and hall are tight. He knocks a corner every time he comes over. Also not good for the long term.

We've looked at what feels like every "accessible" place in the area and nothing works. Either, it really isn't acceciable, or it is simply a single room with a bathroom and little kitchenette type place. We've agreed we can't live together in either option.

It sucks. And it is frustrating. Neither of our current places work and we aren't finding anything different on the market. We can't afford to build or modify something either.

So Guido, stay on your soapbox. I'll join you up there.

Edited by ohio4282, 06 November 2009 - 01:36 AM.

[guido]

ohio4282, on Nov 6 2009, 01:35 AM, said:

So Guido, stay on your soapbox. I'll join you up there.

Getting kinda crowded up here, what with the chairs and everything... hey who was that? did you just touch me? oh, how the hell would i know?

[blckchns]

Most of the apartment complexes I've found in Northern Virginia with accessible apartments are all booked up, but all of the apartments are wheelchair accessible. If that makes any sense. The only problem I've had was finding the right apartment with the right floor plan for the bathroom. Most of them have the toilet right by the bathtub transferring impossible because there wasn't enough room to maneuver my chair.