Architect Erick Mikiten helped Melanie and David Maher build a house in Livermore, California.

On the first floor, a gentle ramp ensures accessibility to common areas; all passageways are at least three feet wide. “Our goal was to accommodate a wheelchair without having the house feel designed differently at all,” says principal Lisa Gray. The builder on the project, Scotty McClelland, has known and worked closely with the families for many years.

So Melanie Maher could access the kitchen, Mikiten created a station with a KitchenAid cooktop, a refrigerator and freezer drawers from U-Line, and a Sharp drawer microwave. He also adjusted the height of the PaperStone counter to allow Melanie to roll her chair underneath.

In renovating the 90-square-foot kitchen of a Boston apartment, architect Chris Greenawalt drew upon both spatial and material solutions to create a pleasing and wheelchair-accessible space to accommodate all three of its tenants.

With more and more baby boomers reaching the age of 65, architect Susanne Stadler believes the time is right to rethink and redefine housing. “Homes for life” share key elements: adaptability, transparency and flexibility. Increasingly, kitchens can double as health centers to promote health and wellness, while bathrooms are more like living rooms than “dark caves with no natural light." Stadler cited Snaidero’s Skylab accessible kitchen as a model for Universal Design.

Greenawalt also clad the undersides of taller cabinets in marble to create an attractive aesthetic from every angle.

LAYOUT The ADA states the minimum clearance for wheelchair accessibility is 32 inches wide. To improve flow, Soheil Nakhshab of Nakhshab Development & Design prefers a distance of 48 inches between the kitchen cabinets and the island (1). LIGHTING LED lights are long-lasting and easy on the eyes. In addition to task lighting above work stations, install lights in storage spaces to spotlight hard-to-see areas. STORAGE “You want daily-use items at waist-height,” says architect Karen Braitmayer, who recommends rolling cabinets (2) and pull-down shelves (3). Rotating lazy susan trays (4) and full-extension slide shelving also give easier access to deeper storage spaces. Child-safety locks on cabinets keep contents secure (5). DRAWERS Lever-style door handles and wide drawer pulls (6) are easier to grasp. Nakhshab also suggests a touch system “where you push the door and it pops open.” COOKTOP Induction cooktops (7), which conduct heat only when in contact with a magnetic cooking vessel, are safer for homes with children, as well as for adults who may forget to shut off the burners. Braitmayer likes burners set side-by-side with controls at the front. APPLIANCES Drawer-style appliances and side-opening doors can be game changers. “Imagine if you have a bad back,” says architect Robert Kahn. “The side-opening oven (8) is an ADA design that benefits the general population.” Light signals, which can be clearly seen from a distance, can also complement or replace audible alerts like buzzers. SINK Wheelchair users require clearance below the sink (9). Covering exposed pipes with insulating wrap can prevent burns or abrasions, says Braitmayer. Lever-style fixtures (10) are easier to grip than twist knobs, and motion-sensor technology gives users hands-free control. WORK SURFACES Countertops installed at varying levels (11) offer easy-to-use work spaces, regardless of the user’s height. Rails installed along the perimeter (12) offer extra support. FLOOR Surfaces like cork and rubber are comfortable, provide extra traction, and are smooth for wheelchairs plus, they hide nicks and scuffs.

The gradually inclined entrance ramp and open plan help make the house accessible to a range of users.

In a narrow residual area between the breezeway and the house's northern elevation, Cohen created a so-called "skinny space," with a changing area accessible to the outdoor shower.

The owners are in their seventies – they actually got married during construction at the site – and they wanted to have a home that would be accessible when necessary. The shower is equipped for a wheelchair, and so is every hallway in the house.

The huge master bathroom includes a fully accessible walk-in shower.

The bathroom's shower is wheelchair accessible, if needed.

The lanai just off the living room and accessible to the kitchen.

To open up the kitchen’s tight quarters, Greenawalt removed an adjacent divider wall and created hollow areas beneath the sink, counter, and custom-built bar, allowing resident Amy Corcoran-Hunt to sit comfortably facing them in her wheelchair.

Beds are lofted above the kitchenette and large bench, and are accessible by wooden ladders.

In the bathroom closest to their daughter's bedroom, the owners made the shower accessible to a wheelchair.

David Hertz shows how he used a pre-fabricated panels typically used for walk-in refrigeration buildings for the Panel House (above) and a 747 wing to build the 747 Wing House in Malibu.

David’s desk, like the other furniture in the apartment, was chosen for both style and wheelchair accessibility.

"The Andersons did a very good job of creating spaces that are completely accessible to all our family and friends,” says Naomi. "This house is so well designed that its accessibility is sometimes overlooked.”

Little fits the extreme indoor-outdoor living of the family better than an accessible spot for their sandals.

The view from the rear lawn towards the house. The outdoor living room is accessible from the family room (on the right) and the living room (on the left).

The green roof is accessible via ladder. "This type of insertion on the plot demanded care and attention with the design of the rooftop, which is the fifth facade of the building," adds the architects.

The ADA compliant, handicap-accessible guesthouse at the Butterfly Gap Retreat in Maryland, Tennessee, just outside Knoxville.

In an apartment in Hong Kong, the bedroom sits on a raised floor that contains storage beneath. The Japanese-inspired cabinetry keeps the bedroom feeling fuss-free and simple, but the storage spaces are still accessible without needing to lift up the bed.

A late-1960s spiral stair designed by an aeronautical engineer to lead passengers to the bar inside a 747. From Off the Wall Antiques.

A private garden is accessible by a glass panel.

Finding a wheelchair accessible home in New York City can be a challenge, but after a diving accident left David Carmel paralyzed from the waist down, Carmel knew he was looking for a home that was "accessible but not institutional." Working with Della Valle Bernheimer, they made an apartment that is both beautiful and accessible, with a lightweight sliding wall that closes off the bedroom from the living area.

Accessible Kitchen

A rooftop deck is accessible from the rolling ladder inside.

A patio that is accessible via the living room.

“The benches on the two sides of the dining table hide roomy containers that are accessible during the night as well,” Bene says. “There are other storage spaces in the boat—for example, the prow is accessible from inside, and it gives us extra room to store equipment.”

The children's rooms on the upper floor are accessible via a catwalk.

A concrete patio, accessible by large sliders, flows into the landscape.

The bed is suspended by steel rods over the dinning table and is accessible by a ladder.

A green roof and terrace are accessible from the top-floor kitchen.

The office, accessible through a set of heavy walnut doors,