An unfortunate tumble down a set of stairs the day he and his wife Elaine moved into their brand-new home last April planted Wayne Kinsella in a wheelchair for more than five months.

It also changed the way he builds new homes.

The obvious pain and suffering of a broken heel aside, the experience gave the head of Sundance Master Builders, based in St. Albert, Alta., a chance to imagine some pretty bleak scenarios.

First, he realized the accident could have happened to anyone. He also knew it could have yielded more serious and longer-term consequences; consequences capable of forcing some people from their dream homes, regardless of when they moved in.

Jack Dagley, Business Edge
Wayne Kinsella checks out the bathroom in an home designed to offer built-in accessibility.

In that way, Kinsella was lucky. Having already built a wheelchair-friendly home for a family whose son was injured while off-roading with friends - and anticipating the day when he and Elaine's parents may use wheelchairs to visit their home - the Kinsellas' new home already featured extra-wide doors and hallways.

That, coupled with phones and the Internet, ensured the luxury-home builder never missed a day at the helm of Sundance, which builds 10 to 20 homes a year, focusing on bungalows in the $750,000 to $1.5-million market.

Interestingly enough, many of Sundance's clients don't really want to talk about the benefits of a wheelchair-friendly home. And that's OK with Kinsella.

Now that he knows what it's like to crawl down the hallway of a home that can't accommodate a wheelchair, he's more than willing to design around that possibility, especially since so many features of accessibility are a good fit with great design.

"There are things we do in every house now that are going to make that home better for somebody in the future," notes Kinsella, whose homes now feature wider hallways and doors, larger bathroom areas and doors with lever handles.

Wider staircases and over-sized garages are also Sundance staples. Both exude a look of luxury - and can be adapted to include a chairlift or ramp.

It's tough to nail down statistics regarding physical disabilities. But a national survey released in 2002 shows one of every seven Canadians aged 15 and over reported some level of disability (physical, mental or health-related) in 2002.

Statistics Canada also predicts that senior citizens will outnumber children by 2015 and account for up to 25 per cent of the population by 2031 (nearly double the current proportion of 13 per cent).

An aging population means most of us should probably be thinking about whether our homes can handle visits from relatives and friends who use wheelchairs or walkers, says Alanna Thiessen, an occupational therapist with Alberta's Accessible Housing Society (AHS).

Based in Calgary, AHS operates three barrier-free housing facilities in Calgary. It also keeps a list of barrier-free housing and offers a free residential assessment and design service that includes phone advice, home visits, and renovation or new design assistance - with the help of one of the society's two occupational therapists and an architect.

Jack Dagley, Business Edge
Derek Gibson moves down an extra-wide hallway.

Thiessen frequently gives advice on everything from handrails to stair-riser height and the advantages of single-lever bathroom taps.

Even when homeowners realize they need a ramp, they may not know how long the ramp needs to be, a detail AHS can investigate and advise upon.

She agrees with Kinsella's assertion that accessibility can be designed into a new home more cheaply than it can be added.

Kinsella figures an extra-wide door that costs $20 extra at construction could total $1,000 more with a renovation.

"Most of our referrals come from home-care (personnel) because they're in the home and see what's required," says Thiessen. She estimates that half the agency's clients are seniors, with others disabled by a variety of conditions.

Shirley McLeer admits she and her husband Lionel could have used AHS when they built their new home a couple of years back after an off-road incident left her son, Derek Gibson, in a wheelchair. A brain injury means he also suffers from double vision and serious short-term memory issues.

Although they received advice from a number of agencies working with Derek, they also lucked into a new-home builder willing to build his first elevator-equipped home - and keen to think about design details that would make life easier for a young man who wants some independence, but only has use of his left arm.

Their home, which backs onto a green space, includes a suite for Derek, who handles most of his personal care, and an elevator to access the rest of the home. He tells his mom, "This house makes me feel that I'm not handicapped."

Wayne Kinsella, whose firm built that home in St. Albert, says he learned a lot in that process. Since then, Sundance has built another client a barrier-free home with an elevator.

They're also hard at work building their first elevator-equipped spec house, a fully developed bungalow that spans about 1,800 sq. ft. on the main floor. He's confident the elevator will be a major selling point when the home hits the market later this year.

So, what some may see as risky, Kinsella sees as smart. You could even say he feels that wisdom in his knees.

After all, this home builder has experienced the future - and it's only accessible if you plan it that way.

(Joy Gregory can be reached at joy@businessedge.ca)