Accessible Farmhouse

This project won the NARI National 2023 Contractor of the Year Award for Universal Design – Kitchen. It also won three NARI of Madison 2023 Contractor of the Year Awards in the categories Residential Kitchen Over $200,000, Universal Design - Bath, and Universal Design – Kitchen.

We updated the entirety of this farmhouse to create a modern, wheelchair-accessible living space. The original “summer kitchen” of this farmstead was replaced by a new addition that includes a full-sized kitchen, screened porch, bedroom, laundry room, pantry, powder room, and an attached garage.

To create a more comfortable and energy efficient interior, we updated the home with zoned heating, air conditioning, and dehumidifiers for focused climate control. We also added recycled brick siding, recycled barn board siding, a new metal roof, and floating cherry shelves from locally harvested trees to capture the farmhouse chic aesthetic while maintaining its historic charm.

In addition to these conventional upgrades, the farmhouse also features an abundance of accessibility features. A ramp with an automatic opening door provides easy access from the new garage to the house. Accommodations include widely spaced cabinets for ease of mobility, a pullout cutting board and an oversized overhang on the kitchen island with room for wheelchair access, nine-inch toe kicks for clearance underneath kitchen cabinets, as well as a floor plan designed without thresholds.

We also added a zero-entry shower in the upgraded bathroom and docking drawers for convenient access to outlets. Elsewhere, lower-height light switches, raised-height wall outlets, reinforced floor framing, and durable porcelain tile were added. A 750-pound motorized wheelchair lift platform was installed to provide access to the basement workshop, storage, and mechanical systems.

All of these accessibility updates provide necessary functional benefits to make this modern farmhouse feel like home.