Accessible housing issues

[nms]

There are various solutions to make existing private homes accessible (see my wry comment about stair glides). The reality is that while the majority of single family homes,  townhomes or small apartments are not accessible when they are first constructed, they can be retrofitted after the fact to accommodate the needs.  This ranges from extra handrails in bathrooms up to and including ramps or lifts inside and outside of buildings.  Private or community personal support worker or nursing care is also available to provide care at home as necessary.  When then person in need no longer needs those devices or services, the home can be returned to a less accessible state.

The question is whether new builds should be required to provide homes that are accessible or easily retrofitted from the start.  My answer is still yes.  In your duplex scenario with one up, one down, the ground floor unit can be made accessible through proper grading.  That project is now 50% accessible.


Just as the pandemic was declared last year, a third review of the AODA recommended improvements to the act with a specific eye to residential construction. (see below) I'm not sure, with everything pivoting to Covid response, whether any of these recommendations are being considered.

Incentives for Housing Accessibility

During the public meetings the Hon. David Onley held while preparing his review, attendees outline barriers they have encountered in inaccessible housing. For instance, some common barriers in houses and apartments are:

• Steps without ramps, elevators, or lifts
  
  
• Lack of automatic or push-button doors at apartment-building entrances
  
  
• Narrow entrances, doorways, or hallways
  
  
• No accessible Parking in apartment buildings or condominiums
  
  
• Bathrooms without room for people in wheelchairs to turn around
  
  
• Counters, cabinets, and other fixtures too high for people to access from their wheelchairs
  

For example, people sometimes live in houses where bathrooms are too small for their wheelchairs. As a result, they cannot use the bathrooms in their own homes independently. Furthermore, many people must live in these conditions for ten years or more, because of the accessible housing shortage. Although new houses and apartments are built every year, few of them are accessible. In addition, when houses are built accessibly, they are not always affordable. Therefore, Onley’s review recommends rules and incentives for housing accessibility.

Rules for Accessibility in New Housing
Onley’s review recommends that the barrier-free requirements of the Ontario Building Code should apply to living spaces. Moreover, review attendees suggest that a certain percentage of new living spaces should be accessible. For instance, in a new apartment building, a certain percentage of the apartments should be barrier-free. Likewise, a certain percentage of the houses in a subdivision should also be built without barriers. These requirements would ensure that people with accessibility needs have places to live that meet those needs. In addition, attendees suggest that living spaces should be built in ways that allow accessible features to be easily added later. For example, someone who gains a disability as they age may need an elevator in their home.
Furthermore, the review recommends tax deductions for the sale or land transfer of buildings or subdivisions offering accessible housing. These deductions will encourage developers to include accessible living spaces in new apartment buildings or subdivisions.

Incentives for Retrofitting Existing Housing
To meet the need of retrofitting existing houses for accessibility, Onley’s review recommends grants and tax incentives. For instance, the review mentions that twenty years ago, the government offered grants for people to add accessible features to their homes. This grant program allowed people to buy inaccessible houses and make the changes needed to live in them independently. Furthermore, older adults who gained disabilities could make their houses accessible and remain living in their homes. Therefore, the review recommends that the government should offer this home renovation program again. In addition, owners of rental properties should have access to similar funding to make their properties accessible to tenants with disabilities.