Inspiring blind architect designs buildings for the blind

How does an architect design buildings for the blind? Chris Downey of California, a prosperous "green" designer began designing buildings for the blind after he began to lose his vision. The Caller-Times reports that after going blind, he tried returning to the job he'd started a few months before he became ill, but was laid off before Christmas.

On a whim he called Patrick Bell, a business adviser to architecture firms...Bell was working with a firm called Design Partnership, which is doing a joint venture with SmithGroup to design a 170,000-square-foot Polytrauma and Blind Rehabilitation Center for the Veterans Administration Palo Alto Health Care System. Bell made the connection, and Downey was hired as a contract architect.
<br /'It's the first time any of us have dealt with even a sight-impaired architect, let alone one who is blind,' says Kerri Childress, VA spokeswoman. 'It's really been beneficial having an architect who is blind working on a facility to serve the blind.'

The design phase runs through July. From there, Downey has been invited to serve as a mentor to blind high-school students at a weeklong event this summer in Maryland. He's also back to cycling on a tandem bike with his buddy steering, and is up to 60 miles in the Oakland hills.

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http://www.caller.com/news/2009/may/11/inspiring-blind-architect-designs-buildings-blind/