ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, March 30, 1997 TAG: 9704010020
SECTION: HOMES PAGE: D-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: CORRIE M. ANDERS THE SAN FRANCISCO EXAMINER
Residential developers have started already to meet the challenge of providing changing needs for an aging population.
Architect Jerry Gloss still remembers his surprise when he returned to his parents' home for a visit a few years ago: His childhood bedroom had been taken over by his father.
``I said, `Dad, what's going on here?'''
His father replied: ``Your mother {needs] a different temperature.''
But, the son continued: ``I talked to mom and mom's take was that `Your dad snores like a bear and I can't get any sleep.'''
Gloss' parents had a homespun solution. Increasingly, however, developers are building homes with dual master bedrooms connected to a master bath with walk-in closets.
``So there is an option when sleep does become a problem or because people have different temperature tolerances,'' said Gloss, a principal with Knudson Gloss Architects in Boulder, Colo.
Gloss told the story of his parents to several hundred home-building professionals attending a recent Houston seminar sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders.
It was a case in point of why residential developers must start to take note of the changing needs of an aging population - and one that is on the crest of explosive growth.
Already, homeowners are encountering some of the more refined differences in home design since Wally and Theodore grew up in their ``Leave It to Beaver'' suburb.
The trend is toward one-story homes for aging baby-boomers or two-story homes with a master bedroom suite on the first floor. They provide substantially more natural light - that's a concession to aging eyes, as is a trend toward kitchen counters with contrasting heights and colors. Halls and doorways are wider. Levers replace door knobs. Light switches and electrical outlets are more accessible. Showers come equipped with built-in seats and grab bars.
And there are the creature comforts - security inside gated communities, golf, jogging paths, and other recreational and health-oriented amenities.
Virtually all of those features are contained in Seymour and Marilyn Handelman's new home and new neighborhood in suburban Sacramento. Seymour Handelman, 68, a semi-retired retail jeweler, and Marilyn, 67, are building a three-bedroom home at a planned retirement community.
Their new home will be noticeably different from their old home.
``After being in this house for 36 years, everything will be new,'' said Seymour Handelman.
Marilyn Handelman said she especially liked ``the 10-foot-high ceilings ... and wonderful transoms that give you a lot more light in the house.''
Other favorites: an open and easy-flowing layout that allows their fireplace to be seen from most anywhere in the home and a marble seat in the shower.
Many of the design changes and lifestyle features already are being incorporated in planned retirement communities for active adults 55 and older. But it is the sheer size of the baby-boom generation that is cajoling and prodding other residential builders into rethinking their home designs.
U.S. births exploded nine months after the United States' 1945 World War II victories in Europe and Japan and continued through 1964. Their numbers grew to 78 million - the largest single segment of the U.S. population.
Today, 36 million boomers are 40-something and 50,000 each day celebrate a 50th birthday. And by the year 2010, the number of childless couples will double to 16 million from 8 million today.
The baby boomers are a diverse lot that can't be pigeon-holed. They range from Deadheads to Tchaikovsky aficionados. Many are affluent and many more aren't. Some want to live on golf courses and others prefer water as their focal point.
After working hard for 30 or 40 years, retirees have an ``I deserve it'' attitude, said Gloss. If they can afford it, their new homes boast hot tubs, fireplaces and media centers.
``It used to be that a media center was an indulgence,'' Gloss said. ``Now, it's the same for every subdivision. Even in a $200,000 house, some of our clients are incorporating surround sound in their entertainment centers.''
``They want glamour,'' said Walter Richardson, a California architect.
``It's their last big bash,'' agreed architect Quincy Johnson.
Along with the ``indulgences'' - which also include Subzero vegetable and fruit crispers - are design features that acknowledge that boomers have ``lost a step'' or are starting to feel a bit of arthritis.
Here are some key design elements that baby-boomers will find in their retirement home, according to new-housing specialists who spoke at the Houston seminar, including Gloss, Richardson, Johnson and designer Jean Delaura of President Design One in Lemont, Ill.
Fewer stairs. The trend is toward one-story homes. Still, a two-story home with a master suite downstairs with additional bedrooms upstairs is a viable option.
``The boomers can be happy with this because they spend all their time on the first floor,'' said Johnson of Quincy Johnson Baretta in Boco Raton, Fla. ``And if and when the kids come home to visit, they've got their suite of rooms upstairs which otherwise are closed off and not utilized until they have guests.''
Lighter and airier homes. Adults at 60 need three to five times more light than when they were 20 years old, said DeLaura. That has prompted construction of homes with ceilings higher than the standard eight feet to accommodate transoms.
High contrast kitchens. To aid visual cueing, countertops have contrasting colors - with a dark band running along the edge of the surface and a different surface color.
``If you have glaucoma or cataracts or are visually impaired and you have something in your hand, you won't know where the edge of the surface is. A dark band will become very apparent and you will know where the edge of the counter is,'' said DeLaura.
Homeowners also are finding darker edge treatments around kitchen sinks. ``If you're looking at a white-on-white, a person might think they're putting something on the counter and they're actually dropping it in the sink and it breaks,'' said DeLaura.
Standard 36-inch-high kitchen countertops are being staggered in height - from as low as 30 inches up to 42 inches - because different tasks require different levels.
At 30 inches, ``you can extend your arms and get some leverage if you're rolling out pastry dough,'' said Gloss. ``And if you're using an ultra sharp knife,'' the higher countertop brings the work closer to your eyes.
And there's a bonus. ``By staggering the counter to different levels, you have grandma, mom and the children able to utilize different spaces,'' said DeLaura.
Larger hallways. The width of hallways is growing to 60 inches from a standard 42 inches and doorways to 36 inches from 32 inches. The change is not simply to accommodate a handicapped person.
``If you had a 20-year-old who was in a skiing accident and using a walker or a wheelchair, they can function fully,'' said DeLaura. You can also get around easier ``as you get older or when mom comes to visit and she's in a wheelchair.''
Not to mention that it's easier to move around beds or other large pieces of furniture through the wider spaces.
Courtyard homes: Not every retirement community has a golf course or water view, so courtyard homes are ``ideal for boomers,'' said Johnson. ``You open your front door and walk into a courtyard.''
The courtyard is private and ties into nature - from a flower garden, patio, swimming pool, hot tub or waterfall to a little pond.
``The outdoors becomes an extension of the indoors,'' said Johnson. At the same time, boomers who have traded down to a smaller house can use the indoor-outdoor concept to double their entertainment space.
Lower doorbells and light switches and higher electrical outlets. Raising the outlets six inches helps to eliminate back strain while lowering light switches to 44 inches from 54 inches makes it easier for both small children and people in wheelchairs.
Bathroom doors that swing out. ``If you faint and fall - or you can't get up - that door is blocked if it swings in,'' DeLaura said. ``If it swings out, you can still crawl out.''
Lever handles replacing doorknobs. ``As we get older, some of us may wake up with arthritis,'' said DeLaura. ``If I have a round doorknob, I'm not going to be able to turn that baby. With levers, I can use my elbows, a cane or almost anything to get in and out of that space.''
Approximately 40 percent of women over 50 suffer from arthritis, according to Joan McCloskey, editor of Better Homes and Gardens, who seconded the move towards levers.
Health consciousness. Golf ranks at the top of retirement community living. But early retirees also are demanding homes in communities with jogging and nature trails and health clubs.
``People are not sitting around on their couches,'' said Richardson. ``They're not in the sunset of their life ... but probably at the beginning of the most exciting and productive era in their life.''
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