Creating an inclusive, accessible, and affordable community for all in Gresham, Oregon.
On a beautiful fall day, supporters, board members, public officials and community members came together to celebrate the opening of Wynne Watts Commons with the visionary team at Albertina Kerr.
Albertina Kerr’s mission is to empower people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, mental health challenges, and other social barriers to lead self-determined lives and reach their full potential. They are keenly aware of the critical affordable housing crisis for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and the new Wynne Watts Commons affordable housing community is a stunning solution.
Wynne Watts Commons has 150 affordable units, 30 of which are specifically designed for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. It is the largest net zero energy affordable housing development in the Pacific Northwest. It produces enough renewable energy to power the entire building, ensuring that residents have no utility costs.
The Kuni Foundation provided a $207,000 grant to support making the 30 units for individuals with IDD universally accessible. The funding supported assistive technology and universal design furnishings, fixtures, and equipment.
Universal design elements for each of the 30 units include automatic entry doors, wheelchair friendly roll-up controls in the elevators, pull-out cooktops and motorized kitchen cabinets. The bedrooms feature RGB controllable lighting to help with mood management and overstimulation.
An app helps the tenant control the lights, ceiling fans, open and close window shades and manage temperature control. The units also include safety features like sensors that proactively send an alert if a tenant needs assistance. This technology allows people with IDD live self-determined lives in a supportive and inclusive community.
About Wynne Watts Commons video.
The Kuni Foundation is committed to ensuring that people experiencing IDD have more affordable, accessible and inclusive housing options. We are proud to partner with Albertina Kerr on Wynne Watts Commons and encourage you to learn more about the current inclusive housing crisis and a path forward that ensures the dignity of housing choice for all in our recent study: From Invisibility to Inclusion – Increasing Housing Options for People Experiencing Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities.
