Greenfield is a city with a growing population of people over the age of 65.  We also have a significant number of people who are under that age but use wheelchairs, walkers, and other devices to assist them with their mobility.  

We also have an aging housing stock which was not developed with disabled people in mind.  Our older buildings often have many stairs, bathrooms that are narrow and do not have grab bars in key places, doors that open in a way that is difficult for someone using a mobility device to maneuver, etc.

As we consider the expansion of and retrofitting of Greenfield’s housing, we need to keep the question of accessibility at the top of our agenda.

Although we may think that we know what accessibility means, it is important to recognize that there are technical definitions of what an accessible home should include:

    “Accessible housing is housing that people with disabilities can easily enter and use.  It has elements that people may need to live independently, like wider doorways, clear floor space for wheelchairs to move throughout the home, low countertops, assistive technology, and grab bars in the bathrooms.”(Administration for Community Living; acl.gov)

This general definition is a baseline for accessibility.  But the goal of many disability rights activists goes beyond that to “universal design.”  “Universal design is the design and composition of an environment so that it can be accessed, understood, and used to the greatest possible extent by all people regardless of their age, size, ability, or disability.  An environment (or any building, product, or service in that environment) should be designed to meet the needs of all people who wish to use it.  It is not a special requirement, for the benefit of only a minority of the population.  It is a fundamental condition of good design.”

Universal design is a concept in which products and environments are designed so that there is no need for adaptation or specialized design.

And there is a third accessibility definition that is important for us to understand.  It is “visitability”.  This refers to housing that is designed in a way that it can be lived in or visited by people who require accessibility.  A home is visitable when it has:

• A zero-step entrance….no steps or else a ramp at the entrance;
• Doors with 32 inches of clear passage space so a wheelchair can get through it; and
  
• One bathroom on the main floor you can get into when using a wheelchair.

Why is visitability important?  If you are disabled and are living in an accessible apartment or home, but your neighbors’ homes do not have these 3 basic aspects as part of their design, then you are unable to visit them with ease and dignity.  This isolates the disabled person and robs them of a real sense of community.

We are pleased that developers of some of the newer housing in Greenfield are taking these issues into account.  The planned developments at Wilson’s (now called The Putnam), 170-186 Main Street, and the apartments that will be part of the Wells Street Shelter complex, all will have accessible apartments.  And the goal is to make as many as possible visitable.

There is, obviously, more work to do.  Please keep this issue in mind when you attend Planning Board or Zoning meetings.  While every building may not be able to meet the standards noted above especially when considering the restraints of making these homes and apartments affordable as well, the need for accessible and visitable housing is an important one that should be on our agenda.

For more information on accessibility, universal design, and visitability see:

Massachusetts Office on Disability 

Greenfield Commission on Disability Access

National Council on Independent Living

Center for Excellence in Universal Design

Mass Fair Housing Center provides legal services to clients needing Reasonable Accommodations and Modifications, for those suffering housing discrimination based on disability.