In Vancouver, BC, architecture firm Acton Ostry renovated a 1950s ranch house on a sloped site for a partially paralyzed man. Partition walls were removed and open spaces were preserved. Architects added large sliding doors and louvered skylights to flood the interior with sunlight...
Detailed features designed for wheelchair accessibility include the open bathroom shower, low cabinets that serve as built-in closets, and counter areas with clear space underneath.
Outside, native plants and a rock garden cover the gentle slope of the site. For more information on Acton Ostry Architects, click here. For more photographs and a detailed explanation of the house's wheelchair-accessible features, see this article from the Slow Home.
Photos: Acton Ostry Architects
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Comments (11)
I love all of the light let in through the skylight and huge windows. This home is very nice and just happens to be in one of my favorite cities!
awesome! thanks so much for featuring an accessible home!
loooove those skylights.
Thank you so much for this meaningful post. It made my day.
Wonderful looking home---the best to whomever gets to live in it.
Thank you for the post on accessible design. It is greatly appreciated.
You should do more posts about accessible design. Kudos for this one, it's really great!
I love that this place doesn't look like it's for someone handicapped - It's just good clean design that anyone can feel at home with.
Keep the accessible posts coming! MUCH more informative than the usual fare.
This house was featured in Azure and Dwell in early '05, I remember because as a wheelchair user myself, the articles on this house helped me pick and choose ideas for my own house. There are more pictures on the owner's site here: http://www.murraysiple.com/work/house/index.php
Wonderful post. It's a beautiful house that anybody would love to live in, nobody's giving anything up for accessibility. There's no reason that should have to be a compromise.