BUILDING CODE FOR RAMPS IN PENNSYLVANIA SHOULD BE 1 INCH PER A FOOT INCLINE. THERE SHOULD BE A ROOF OVER TOP OF THE RAMP.
Nothing stinks worse then trying to ride a wheel chair down a ski slope in the winter and having ice and snow to deal with.
Yes the doors and all will need to be widened, but I would check with the rehab and find out how severe his limitations are going to be. If he will not be confined to a wheel chair, putting everything at arms length for someone in a wheel chair will only mess up his rehab.
If possible, you want to get him out of the chair, not make him spend more time in the chair.
Living alone is really tough, if it is more then a one story home, it is almost impossible to get to the second floor. The bathroom, laundry, kitchen, bedroom, storage etc all needs to be on the first floor and handicap accessible.
The guy might have to move!
The State Cop that got shot up by Brockway had about $100,000.00 worth of home improvements donated towards his recovery that I know of. I had a cousin in law that worked on the project for several months..
Tpr. Wilson was just lucky that he had a girlfriend before the accident and that she was smart enough to stick around.. The State takes very good care of their own, so I am sure he is a multimillionaire today!
We all are not that lucky. Sometimes a person even falls through the cracks, both at the judicial level and the personal level and we are forced to live how ever we can manage after a life changing event, and we don't get things handed to us - just because we are disabled!
Contact the Homes Foundation, Mike can give you some good suggestions as to the possibilities of being able to help this person with the funds you have available.
The most important things are keeping the utility bills paid, keeping the taxes paid, keeping some heat inside of the house during the winter months and keeping this mans spirit up while he recovers. Anything else will be icing on the cake!
Now would be the time to try to line up some additional help for housekeeping in the future. Things like scrubbing the floors, sweeping / shoveling the snow in the winter, home repairs / improvements. Things that a normal person takes for granted, or doesn't even think about like cooking, bathing and washing the dishes is a big event for someone that is disabled.
You need to have an oven and a stove top that will not burn that persons hands and arms each time they reach for something. You need to have a refrigerator / freezer that the person can open the door - even in a wheel chair and can reach anything on the shelves.
Taking out the garbage can also be stressful when you are disabled. So having garbage facilities within arms reach is also important. How will the person get the bags out to the curb?
Sometimes having a garage that they can drive into and get out of the vehicle and into their chair and be able to go straight into their home, all on one level is a good thing to have.
Having a deck where they can sit and look at nature is another bonus.
Having a hobby is also a nice thing, things like woodworking, metal working, fishing - fly tying, amateur radio etc is a good way to keep their mind off their troubles. Maybe you could build them some kind of island that he could drive his wheel chair directly into the work bench area and do things, putter around, will do more to make him feel useful then anything else!
Just because you loose a leg doesn't mean that his life is going to stop.
He will probably learn how to walk with some type of prosthetic or a crutch and won't even need the wheel chair all of the time.