Case Study: How This Ottawa Family Built a Home For Their Aging Parents Without Sacrificing Anyone's Independence

The Heart-Wrenching Decision No One Wants To Make

When Sarah’s father had his second fall in six months, she knew something had to change.

Her parents, both in their late 70s, were still living in the three-bedroom townhouse they'd owned for decades. Her mother was relatively healthy, but her father's mobility issues were getting worse. The stairs were becoming dangerous. Winter maintenance was overwhelming. And both Sarah and her siblings were worried sick every time the phone rang.

"We'd have the same conversation every Sunday dinner," Sarah told us during our first consultation. "Should they move to a retirement home? Should one of us take them in? Neither option felt right."

Her parents were adamant: they didn't want to go to "one of those places." The retirement homes they'd toured felt institutional. The nice ones with private suites cost $5,000 to $8,000 per month, per person. The math was staggering—potentially $96,000 to $192,000 per year.

But the alternative—moving her parents into Sarah's home—came with its own complications.

"I love my parents," Sarah said. "But we also have teenage kids, my husband works from home, and the idea of everyone sharing bathrooms and kitchens felt like a disaster waiting to happen. My parents didn't want to be a burden, and honestly, we were terrified of what it would do to our family dynamics."

Sarah and her husband Mark owned a large bungalow in Barrhaven on a generous corner lot. They had the space. They just didn't have a solution that preserved everyone's dignity and independence.

Until they discovered what Bill 23 and Ottawa's New Official Plan had made possible.

The Discovery: Your Backyard Can Be The Answer

When Sarah reached out to Ottawa General Contractors, she was emotionally exhausted from months of difficult conversations and impossible choices.

"I was researching retirement homes at 2 AM" she admitted. "My parents worked their whole lives. They raised us. And the best option I could find was parking them in a facility where they'd share dining halls with strangers?"

During our initial consultation, we walked their property and asked about what Sarah's parents actually needed: safety, accessibility, independence, and proximity to family without feeling like a burden.

‍

Then we explained how Ottawa's new zoning regulations had changed everything. Their property could now accommodate a complete secondary dwelling—a fully accessible, beautifully designed home specifically built for her parents' needs. Separate entrance, separate everything, but steps away when needed.

And we could design it specifically for aging-in-place from the ground up.

The Solution: Dignity, Safety, and Togetherness

Here's what we designed for Sarah's parents:

The Home Within A Home

We created an 850 square foot addition connected to the main house but with complete physical separation. Every element was designed with Sarah's parents' current and future needs in mind.

The layout features three bedrooms because Sarah wanted space for more than just her parents. One bedroom is the master suite for her parents. The second could be used as an office, craft room, or guest room for when their other children visit. The third was designed with the future in mind—if her parents eventually needed full-time care, there would be space for a live-in caregiver.

‍