Claymont's Aging-in-Place Partner — Expert Modifications for Delaware's Northern Gateway

Delaware’s Northern Doorstep — Where Pennsylvania Ends and Claymont Begins

Claymont occupies the northernmost strip of Delaware, a community pressed between the Pennsylvania state line and the approach to Wilmington along I-95 and Philadelphia Pike. For decades, Claymont has served as the gateway between the two states — a place where Delaware’s lower cost of living and tax advantages meet the urban density of the greater Philadelphia region. The result is a community with a layered housing stock that reflects every phase of 20th-century suburban and urban development along one of the East Coast’s most heavily traveled corridors.

The homes closest to Philadelphia Pike and the I-495 interchange — rowhomes, duplexes, and small multi-family structures — were built during the early and mid-1900s for workers in the industrial facilities that once lined the Delaware River waterfront. South of Darley Road, mid-century ranches and Cape Cods fill the neighborhoods that expanded during the postwar suburban boom. And along the upper reaches of Philadelphia Pike near Archmere Academy, larger stone and stucco homes on wooded lots reflect an earlier era of genteel suburban living that predates the highway.

These homes are aging alongside the people who live in them. Claymont’s population includes a significant number of long-term residents who moved in during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s and have no intention of leaving. They raised families here. They retired here. And now they need their homes to accommodate the physical changes that come with aging — a need that Claymont’s housing stock was never designed to meet.

Accessible Solutions serves Claymont with the full range of aging-in-place modifications: modular ramps with rental options starting at $300 per month, bathtub-to-shower conversions, roll-in showers, grab bars and handrails, stairlifts, doorway widenings, first-floor living conversions, and durable medical equipment. We are a licensed Delaware contractor and certified Medicaid provider.

Philadelphia Pike Rowhomes and the Realities of Attached Housing

The rowhomes and duplexes along Philadelphia Pike, Governor Printz Boulevard, and the side streets between I-495 and the waterfront represent Claymont’s densest residential construction. These are attached brick or block structures built from the 1920s through the 1950s, designed with the urban efficiency of their era: a narrow front facade, two or three stories connected by a single interior staircase, a kitchen at the rear of the first floor, bedrooms upstairs, and a basement below.

For an aging Claymont resident living in a rowhome, the staircase is the central problem. Every trip from the bedroom to the kitchen requires navigating a full flight of stairs. The bathroom may be upstairs with the bedrooms, requiring additional stair use for the most basic daily function. The basement — where laundry equipment often lives — adds a third level that the stairs connect.

But the staircase is only the most obvious barrier. The front entry typically has three to five concrete steps rising from a narrow sidewalk, with a wrought-iron railing on one side that was designed for decoration rather than weight-bearing support. The bathroom upstairs has a combination tub-shower in a room barely wide enough to turn around in. Interior doorways throughout the home measure 28 to 30 inches.

We approach Claymont rowhomes systematically. A stairlift on the main staircase connects the bedroom level to the living level, eliminating the most dangerous daily activity in the home. A bathroom conversion upstairs replaces the tub with a barrier-free shower configured for the tight footprint. A compact ramp or platform lift at the front entry addresses the exterior steps within the limited setback available. Grab bars at every transition point — stair landings, bathroom entry, toilet, hallway turns — provide the stability that the original construction does not.

Mid-Century Neighborhoods Between Darley Road and Marsh Road

South and west of the Philadelphia Pike corridor, Claymont’s character shifts. The neighborhoods between Darley Road, Marsh Road, and Naamans Road contain the mid-century housing that arrived during the 1950s and 1960s suburban expansion — ranches, Cape Cods, and split-level homes built on larger lots with driveways, attached garages, and the suburban amenities that distinguished them from the older urban housing along the Pike.

These homes were designed for young families, and they served that purpose well. But the same features that made them attractive to a 30-year-old couple in 1962 create barriers for an 80-year-old widow in 2026. The front entry has three concrete steps with an aluminum railing that has loosened in its mounting over decades. The combination tub-shower in the hall bathroom has a porcelain-on-steel tub with a 16-inch wall. The Cape Cod’s second-floor bedrooms are accessed by a staircase tucked into the interior of the home with steep treads and minimal headroom at the top. The split-level’s half-flights of stairs connect every functional area of the house through short but unavoidable elevation changes.

Our modifications for these Claymont neighborhoods follow a priority sequence based on fall risk. The bathroom conversion comes first — replacing the tub with a zero-threshold shower, adding grab bars, and installing a hand-held showerhead on an adjustable slide bar. The front-entry ramp comes next, eliminating the exterior steps that present a fall risk with every coming and going. A stairlift addresses the bedroom-to-living-area stair for two-story and Cape Cod homes. Each modification reduces risk independently, and together they transform the home into a safe environment for long-term aging in place.

The Archmere Academy Corridor — Larger Homes, Distinct Challenges

The upper section of Philadelphia Pike near Archmere Academy and the Claymore area contains some of Claymont’s most substantial residential properties. Stone-faced colonials, stucco-over-masonry homes, and Tudor-influenced residences from the 1920s through the 1940s sit on larger lots with mature landscaping, long driveways, and the architectural character associated with the Brandywine Valley’s early suburban development.

These homes are larger and more architecturally complex than Claymont’s mid-century or urban housing. Multi-story layouts with formal entries, back staircases, sunrooms, and finished third floors create extensive living spaces distributed across multiple levels. Masonry construction means that modification techniques must account for stone and stucco exterior walls, plaster interiors, and the heavier structural components that distinguish these homes from frame construction.

For families in these larger Claymont properties, our approach mirrors the comprehensive planning we bring to Greenville and Hockessin estates. We map the resident’s daily path through the home, identify every barrier along that route, and develop a phased modification plan that addresses the most critical safety issues first while planning for the long-term accessibility of the full property. Stairlifts on main and secondary staircases, bathroom conversions with finish materials selected to match the home’s existing quality, and ramp systems designed to complement the property’s architectural character all contribute to a result that is both safe and appropriate for the home.

Crossing the State Line for Care — Claymont’s Unique Medical Landscape

Claymont’s position on the Pennsylvania border means that many residents receive medical care at Pennsylvania facilities. Crozer-Chester Medical Center in Upland, Taylor Hospital in Ridley Park, and the medical offices along the Baltimore Pike corridor in Delaware County are all closer to many Claymont addresses than Wilmington-area hospitals. When a Claymont resident is discharged from a Pennsylvania hospital with mobility limitations, they return to a Delaware home that needs immediate modification.

Delaware DSHP+ Medicaid eligibility is tied to the resident’s Delaware address, not their medical provider’s location. A Claymont resident who undergoes hip replacement surgery at Crozer-Chester and returns home with stair restrictions and bathing limitations is fully eligible for DSHP+ funded modifications at their Claymont home — significant coverage.

We coordinate with discharge planning teams on both sides of the state line. Our staged inventory at the Middletown warehouse allows us to deploy rental ramps, grab bars, and shower safety equipment to Claymont homes within days of discharge notification. These rapid-response measures protect the patient immediately while the permanent modification plan is developed.

A Personal Assessment for Every Claymont Home

Ray Petkevis conducts every Claymont assessment in person. He walks the property — inside and out — evaluates every entry, hallway, bathroom, staircase, and transition point, and develops a recommendation specific to the home’s construction and the family’s situation. For Claymont families enrolled in Medicaid, he manages the full authorization process. For families paying privately, he provides transparent pricing and financing options through CareCredit and other lending partners.

That assessment is free and carries no obligation. It is the starting point for every project we undertake, and for Claymont families navigating the challenge of aging in a home that was not built for it, it is the most valuable hour you will spend.