Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center
Charles’s Story
Over the past few months, the concept of aging-in-place has come to the front of my mind. I have been training to run / walk a 5-mile race that is coming up in October, and for all those who knew me before I was overweight (yes that was a long time ago), I was never a runner. However, I needed a goal to motivate myself to exercise, and by some overwhelming depth of evil and bad decision-making, I decided that a 5-mile race would be the goal. So I run / walk / crawl a couple of miles two days a week and then run / walk / cry 5 miles on Saturday mornings.
It has taken me a couple of months to reach a point where I could go the 5 mile distance, but now I know I will finish the race. Now I am working on finishing in under 1 hour. This sounds easy to some, but for me, that would require cutting 10 minutes off my time in the next 2 weeks. I am not sure I will get there unless, by some excellent luck, the entire race is all downhill and perhaps has a portion that is run while sitting down… So, I do love a challenge and want to beat my goal.
I had a thought, perhaps if I go further in training, 5 miles will go faster come race day. Since I have been able to make 5 miles for a few weeks in a row and not die, I decided to go further this Saturday. After the relief sale, after walking 10,000 steps, after eating a lot of really good food that was not really good for you, I realized that this was not good decision-making. I made it 7.2 miles and did not die; mission accomplished – sort of.
Two days later, my legs are still very tired. Not really hurting, just tired. They are heavy with every step. It is hard to walk up stairs. I know this will pass, but what if every day felt this way even if I did not run? How would life be different? How would my house work for me?
As I age, my body has new aches and pains. Things hurt that I did not know could feel pain and for no reason. My body has decided that torturing me is a fun activity. Assuming I am not alone, this is a problem for many of you, right? Tell me I am not alone… Please?
Aging and changes as a normal part of life
Assuming some of you also are aging (and I hope you are) and feel new aches and pains that you did not in the past, you might be interested in this concept of design called aging-in-place. This concept unfortunately has the word aging in it, and nobody wants to think about that concept. So put that aside for a moment and think about living with ease in-place.
According to AARP, over the next 14 years (as of 2016) 10,000 people will turn 65 years old each day. If some or many of these people face new aches, pains and possibly mobility issues, where will they live? Will they want a house that has stairs? Will they want a house with multiple floors or many small rooms? Will they want a big yard to maintain? These are all new factors in this next boom in housing.
Aging In Place Design is not just about aging people: more considerations and questions
The popular designs of the past, two-story homes or split level homes, are hard to adapt to when there is a mobility issue. It is not just about aging people, but what if you have a baby, stroller, and groceries – a house designed for aging-in-place provides ease of use. What if your daughter breaks an ankle? Having a house with a first floor bedroom and bathroom will make life easier for recovery.
What if your friend in a wheelchair wants to visit? A house designed for aging-in-place works well for building a community of friends with all abilities. What if you want to sit down to work in the kitchen? What if you want more light at times in a room? What if you don’t want to bend over to plug in something? What if you need to move in a new refrigerator? What if you want to shave your legs in the shower? All of these things are answered by aging-in-place design strategies that make living easier. So when you are deciding on what you want in your next new house, you might think about this question: “Why should you want a house designed for aging-in-place?”
Building a new custom home is a leap of faith. It is a complicated process that requires trust in your team. There is design, construction, permits, setbacks, easements, rock, weather delays, room sizes, and aesthetics. So how do you get it all done? How do you figure out who to trust and how to meet your goals? How do you get it right?
Some questions to get you started in the process are as follows:
What style of home do you want?
What is your comfortable budget?
What is your max budget?
What are your must-have wants?
Do you want a custom home or just a new home (custom homes can only be designed by an architect in my experience)
Do you want a home that is energy-efficient, healthy, and durable?
What builder should you use?
Where are you going to build and how will the house fit on the lot?
How big should the house be to achieve your dream?
How will you select everything, tie it all together, meet your budget and schedule, and convey all the decisions to your builder? (This is our job, give us a call!)
Be patient, flexible, and try not to let the stress of a new custom home overwhelm you during the process. Having someone who goes through the process every day on your team is a great first step. We are always happy to discuss the process with you.
How an architect says it: “So tell me your dream so we can design the right solution for you.”
How a waiter would say it: “Have you had time to look at all the options, if so, what would you like?”
How a banker would say it: “Here are your options based on budget, which do you prefer.”
How a history teacher would say it: “Over the years, this is how we have designed it for others.”
How an engineer would say it: “This is the correct solution.”
All of these approaches are used when designing a home. No really, sometimes as architects we design like a waiter, banker, history teacher, engineer, and even sometimes like an architect. Each project is unique and every client needs a unique approach. The costs will vary, the path to the right design solution will vary, and the time it will take will vary. There are no standard and typical design solutions. The land will be different. The orientation of the building will be different. The family will have different goals, values, and budgets. It all impacts the design process and solution. So when pricing a home in early design phase we work based on averages with a large window of what it might be when we get a more defined solution. The best we can do is offer an educated guess based on averages from past experience and projects. We get pretty close with our guesstimates, but it is simply a guess until we get at least to the end of design development and a builder can do some hard take off pricing.
So how do you know that you are on target? The best thing to do is trust that your architect and builder are working as a team in your best interest. There are people in every industry that are honest and act in an ethical manner. Find those people and be open and honest about your goals and budget. If you want to control the budget that is easy to do when you have a trusted team. The biggest impact on the price during design are the number of changes made by the client. The biggest impact on price during construction is the quality of materials you want to use in the home. Figure out the goals, build a trusted team, and aim for the comfortable and realistic budget for your project. I cannot say the budget can be hit every time and there will never be a problem, but this provides the best chance for a successful project.
Gallery Opening on First Friday “Architecture of Life in Watercolors”
You are INVITED!
Each month we host a new artist in our Depot building gallery in the Chesapeake Western Depot at 141 W. Bruce St. (second floor entrance is on Chesapeake). This month we are hosting “Architecture of Life in Watercolors” by W A Berkshire. The artwork will remain on exhibit through October and is for sale. Come view the show and get a tour of the newly renovated space! We will have light refreshments available!
October 7, 2016 from 5pm – 8pm.
First Friday Downtown is a great event with businesses all over downtown becoming art galleries for this night. First Fridays Downtown is a free celebration of culture and community held in downtown Harrisonburg. During the first Friday of the month, the downtown venues host art exhibition openings, local music performers, and various arts related events.
This past month we hosted a Harrisonburg Rockingham Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting as part of our Gallery Opening. We even had the big scissors! Ray and Carla joined our Harrisonburg staff from the Charlottesville office. We had around 175 people attend through the 5pm – 8pm event.
My week at #Construct 2016 was filled with education, friends, culture, and FUN. CSI (Construction Specifications Institute) is a great organization because of the people, staff and members. The show is always a great event. However, the most important reason to go to this educational conference each year is to attend outstanding educational events and meet the leaders of the construction industry.
This year the #Construct Show was held in Austin, Texas. This was my first trip to Austin, a city that has adopted the slogan KEEP AUSTIN WEIRD. The slogan is used to promote local business and inspired by Red Wassenich in 2000 while giving a pledge to an Austin radio station.
The education sessions this year were exceptional. I attended topics on flashing, virtual reality, 3-D printing, leadership, smart wearables, and pro-bono design.
The hands-on session that Tiffany Coppock with Owens Corning put on was incredible. Learning how to flash the various holes in our buildings was invaluable. Being able to touch the materials and install the flashing allowed me to have a more comprehensive understanding of systems we specify.
Sixth street was a unique experience filled with locally owned businesses. Maggie Mae’s is a local legend and has the largest rooftop on sixth street. The music was solid, the drinks were cold, and the humidity was off the charts. Sixth street was young, vibrant, and filled with lots of energy.
The signs on sixth street and the business names were creative. From the tattoo shop to the local bars and restaurants, each had a unique personality and decor.
Gus’s chicken was my favorite hang out in Austin, but not a unique Austin business. The chicken was spicy and fried – a different twist on southern fried.
While sixth street was filled with young energy, Rainey Street was my kind of place. The bars were diverse and food trucks were plentiful. The historic homes that line the street offer shade, small spaces for hanging out, and plenty of culture.
No trip can be complete without a visit to see the bats fly. Each summer night, hundreds of people gather to see 1.5 million bats fly from under the Congress Avenue Bridge. This is a must see for anyone that appreciates nature’s beauty.
A new friend I made at the show sent the following email to me, I think it sums up the show.
“Thank you for pulling me aside and talking to me during CSI. I’m going to confess that I’ve been bragging about you. Imagine, showing up to a convention, and a STRANGER walks right up as if we are already friends, because a mutual friend said that we should talk. You demonstrated one of the big reasons that CSI is still valuable – you connected with me – in a different city – different region of our country. We had a reason to talk – and we now have a reason to keep up the camaraderie”
