Architect with MS Creates Accessible Buildings for People with Disabilities

As an architect, Jerry Green uses his professional expertise to design accessible living spaces for people with disabilities.  As a person living with MS, he knows firsthand about living in an environment that’s accessible as well as aesthetically pleasing. 

Accessible Homes Can Be Aesthetically Pleasing
“You can do the accessibility modifications to a home, and it doesn’t have to look like a clinical environment,” Green says.  “But you have to take a different approach to things like floor coverings. For instance, thick carpets or a heavily textured stone or tile floor becomes a problem when you are in a wheelchair, or if you have trouble lifting your feet and tend to drag your feet across the rough floor surface.” 

MS Led Career Focus
Green can walk with difficulty, but spends most of his time in a wheelchair.  The 61-year-old resident of Salt Lake City was diagnosed with MS in 1998.  His condition went undiagnosed for five years, a fact that Green says may have affected his current level of disability.   MS patients tend to have better outcomes when diagnosed and treated early in the progression of the disease.

But the affable, laid-back architect doesn’t let his disease get in the way of living life to the fullest.   An avid mono-skier, Green is a regular with the National Ability Center’s ski program at Park City Mountain Resort.  And he’s still practicing his profession, now from home.  A successful 23-year career with well known Salt Lake City firm MJSA Architects gave Green a chance to apply his skills to many of the city’s most well known and highly regarded projects.

Accessible Building Portfolio
His body of work includes numerous custom residences and some of the region’s first adaptive reuse conversions of historic warehouse buildings into loft apartments and condominiums, where he helped turn historic structures like Salt Lake City’s Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company building into Artspace II, an affordable live/work residential loft apartment building for artists and retail space for local businesses.

One of his favorite projects was the award-winning adaptive reuse conversion of the historic Silver Brothers Iron Works and Warehouse into Safe Haven, a multiple-unit housing project for inner city homeless individuals with chronic mental illness.  He has also assisted in the design of several accessible public housing developments for Valley Mental Health, Salt Lake City Housing Authority, the Housing Authority of Salt Lake County and the Evanston Housing Authority. 

As a principal with MJSA, he also was involved in the Oasis Café and Golden Braid Bookstore, one of the region’s most unique retail establishments.  Built around a courtyard, the retail space features exposed post and beam construction framed with “Trestlewood” timbers, reclaimed from the historic Lucin Cutoff railroad trestle which ran across the Great Salt Lake. 

One of his most recent and most satisfying professional endeavors was helping fellow MS patient and exercise mate L.D. Artman make some modifications to her home that included a new walk-in shower, accessible bathroom and other touches.

“L.D. was able to find some really unique pieces, like a clear glass vanity countertop,” Green says. “The modifications we made are very pleasing, as well as functional.”

Accessibility in an Architect’s Home
Currently the married father of one daughter by a previous marriage and stepfather to his wife Barbara’s two children is planning some renovations to his own residence, a unique “Art Moderne” white stucco home that was built in 1936.

“While I can get up and down stairs, it is very slow and takes a lot of effort,” Green says.  He’s considering a home elevator, which he prefers aesthetically over the less expensive stair lift option.

Universal Design Future
As to the future of universal design, Jerry says that it’s inevitable that it will become more prevalent.

“Right now, residential builders have not embraced it, because it’s just not that much in demand,” he said.  “I think it’s largely because people are in denial about the need. But as the population continues to age, that will change.  I don’t see why universal design accessibility concepts can’t be marketed successfully, just as is done for compliance with Energy Star energy efficient equipment, construction and green building standards, where we designate them with a star or other distinction.” 

Visit AARP's Livable Community Awards for more information about the concept of universal design and view some award winning communities and homes built with Universal Design principles.  

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Did you recently remodel your home to make it more accessible to fit your special needs?  If so, check out this added benefit - a tax deduction!  See Tax Deductions for Accessible Home Modifications.