WAUSAU, Wis. (Sept. 12, 2006) – Shovelfuls of earth marked the initial steps toward the realization of a dream when organizers broke ground Aug. 29 for the $1.2 million Model Accessible Home to be built near a creek on the northeast end of the campus of Northcentral Technical College.

County Materials donated ready-mix concrete for the foundation of the 4,600-square-foot structure, which will be a two-story hands-on laboratory featuring four bedrooms, four bathrooms, a three-car garage, utility room, meeting room, elevator and other features. The house is intended to serve as a showroom for those with disabilities seeking to modify their own home.

I have an uncle in a wheelchair, so I feel very familiar with that,” said Roger Plamann, architectural instructor at NTC, who headed up the design of the Model Accessible Home. “ It was a composite of the Options (for Independent Living) house in Green Bay, meeting with the Chairs & Cares board; it was based on what they told me, and research.”

The home will feature countertops, mirrors and cabinets that occupants can raise and lower, as well as color and sound features for those with visual and hearing impairments.

“People complain about their houses saying, ‘ If only we could do this …’” , said Wayne Guerink, president of the Wausau-area Chairs & Cares who has been wheelchair-bound since a 1991 auto accident. Guerink has envisioned such a model home for about four years. “It’ ll have things like Braille thermostats, wider doorways … and an informational library.”

The model home is expected to open in early 2007; Chairs & Cares’ next project is a botanical garden accessible to those with disabilities.

County Materials operates 30 locations serving the Midwest. The family-owned, American company is an industry leader in the manufacture and distribution of concrete block, brick, stone, ready-mix, hollowcore, pipe, pavers, retaining walls and Aggregate Finish products for residential, commercial and municipal construction and landscaping.
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