Design for All

BY DEBORAH PADDISON

The Universal Design Living Laboratory Explores Sustainability's Third Dimension

When you think of a "sustainable" home, what comes to mind? One dimension of sustainable is environmental, the basic elements of green design such as Energy Star appliances, low-flow fixtures, and recycled or sustainably produced materials. Another dimension is economical, relating to the inherent energy savings and more efficient use of resources.

But there's also a third dimension, a very significant part of "sustainable" that gets less play but is just as important: social, or accessible. This was the theme of keynote speaker Rosemarie Rossetti, Ph.D., at Interiors08: The ASID Conference on Design, held in New Orleans in the spring.

"When we look at what makes a home sustainable, often the words 'green' and 'sustainable' go together. I wanted to get across the concept that if a home isn't accessible — if you can't live in it, visit it and use its features — then it isn't sustainable," she says.

Speaking from Experience

As a person who uses a wheelchair (after a spinal cord injury in 1998), Rossetti has made it her mission to help spread the word about universal design. She is a nationally recognized author, speaker and expert on universal design issues and has consulted with home product manufacturers.

Rossetti and her husband, Mark Leder, are currently seven years along in the design and construction of an extraordinary project: the Universal Design Living Laboratory (UDLL). Part residence, part teaching tool, the UDLL is a 3,500-square-foot ranch-style home located in metro Columbus, Ohio that the couple is building both to serve as their own home and to educate diverse audiences about universal design.

Rosemarie Rossetti. She and her husband, Mark Leder, are building the UDLL to raise awareness of universal design, green building, safety, and healthy home construction practices among builders, designers, architects and consumers.

Taking the UDLL from dream to reality is a team that includes an architect, interior designer, kitchen/bath designer, lighting designer, landscape architect and marketing consultant. The project has a Web site (www.udll.com), and dozens of industry sponsors and partners have been brought on board, including Marvin Windows and Silestone. After several major hurdles along the way — including having to relocate the project to a different homesite and the bankruptcy of their mortgage lender in the housing crunch — the project is on track for construction to begin in the fall, with completion set for next summer.

"We're the creators, builders and occupants — we've got a lot on our plate," Rossetti says. At her Interiors08 keynote, she talked about the UDLL and unveiled renderings of the home to the audience of about 500 designers. Rossetti also challenged attendees to find a positive way to talk with clients about universal design.

A Broader Mission

The UDLL will be a living, breathing and evolving showcase of human-centered design. During the construction process, tours will be offered to residential and commercial builders, architects, landscape architects, interior designers and manufacturer's representatives. For about a month after the home is finished, it will be open to the public for tours (net proceeds from ticket sales will benefit spinal cord injury research). After that, Rossetti and Leder will move in, and they will continue to offer group tours by appointment.

"We're putting a training room in the basement for ongoing educational work, so that groups can spend a day or so with us and really experience the environment," Rossetti says. "They'll get to see how we live in the home; that's why we're calling it a 'living laboratory.'" Wheelchairs will be available for those who want to gain a better understanding of the home's universal design features on a physical level.

The home's floorplan includes public spaces where visitors can experience how universal design enhances quality of life.

The UDLL also will incorporate green building practices and sustainable materials, advanced automation technology, healthy home construction and the principles of feng shui. Accessible gardens will be designed with pathways, raised planting beds and containers — especially important to Rossetti, who is a horticulturist by trade and an avid gardener.

Every product specified for the home must be compatible with universal design, green building and healthy living. On top of its designation as an Energy Star Home, the couple hopes to get the UDLL certified as an American Lung Association Health House home. "We're also going for certification with the National Association of Home Builders' Green Building Program, which began in February," Rossetti says.

A Catalyst for Change

Rossetti recently approached the U.S. Green Building Council and asked why the LEED for Homes Program doesn't award points for universal design. They thought it was a good question, so they hired a consultant to meet with her and identify specific universal design features that could be included as part of a prescriptive "checklist"-type index for awarding points. The USGBC now will be adding universal design as a sustainability feature for future LEED for Homes projects.

The couple "thought about it a long time" before making a commitment to the living laboratory aspect of the project, knowing that in some respects their privacy may be compromised. In the end, they decided it would be worth it.

"This is really what we want to contribute as our legacy, to be a catalyst for change in the building and design industry," Rossetti says. "If we can utilize our home and our experiences to help others, then that's all well and good."

Rosemarie Rossetti speaks to lay and professional audiences nationwide about universal design. Contact her through her Web site, www.rosemariespeaks.com. To learn more about the Universal Design Living Laboratory, view project renderings and read the construction blog (coming soon), visit www.udll.com.