The Joseph House

Universally designed home in historic neighborhood designated as a national arboretum just 12 miles outside of Washington, D.C.. We designed our home for inter-generational habitation, age-in-place living and accessibility to wheelchair bound & disabled visitors and residents - because we believe it was, and is, the right thing to do. Personal circumstances of family and friends brought to light the harsh fact that homes in the US are not designed for everyone and not designed for the life-events that many of us face with illnesses and aging.

Designed to be sectioned off as needed the home can provide privacy for various visitors or opened up to accommodate entertaining. We've hosted parties of up to 100 people and have a large family who visit often. My husband, a long-time lover of music and media has a music-room for his collection of over 1000 albums/CD's/DVD/s. Custom-designed lighting allows us to create various "scenes" based on lighting colors/hues/levels/settings.

Set in a mature wooded lot, we have multi-decks and patios to enjoy out-door living and entertaining. A butterfly roof allows for maximum light and views. Care was taken to put a majority of our resources into the envelope of the house by using extra insulation and quality windows and siding. Expenses were spared in other areas where we were able to be creative using remnant building materials, architectural artifacts and conservatively priced cabinetry.

As an interior designer with a history in healthcare planning, I utilized my design skills to consult with disabled friends & family as I designed the first floor, especially the accessible bathroom. My husband, a jack-of-all-trades utilized his knowledge of construction, finance and his innate design-eye to influence much of the aesthetics. We have waited 20 years to complete this project and it was well worth the wait.