What would an Inclusive City Be? by Cassidy Brown

What would an Inclusive City be? Speculation on Domesticity and Urban Design against ableism and towards justice.

Collective by Cassidy Brown

“Crip Camp,” Patti Smolian/Netflix

for my bestfriend and muse, Cameron.

Lanette Taylor interpreting at the demonstration at the 1977 Disability Rights Protests/ Anthony Tusley

Table of Contents 01

Introduction

01-08

History of the American Disability Act

09-20

Universal Design

21-36

Invisible Disabilities

37-44

Autism Spectrum Disorder

45-54

Spatial strategies for Autism Spectrum Disorder 06.01 individual 55-70 06.02 domestic 71-80 06.03 urban 81-112

Leonardo da Vinci, Vitruvian Man (ca. 1490).

Introduction

What would an Inclusive City be? Speculation on Domesticity and Urban Design against ableism and towards justice. A Collective by Cassidy Brown

Have you ever walked into a space and immediately were overstimulated? Have you ever felt the lights were uncomfortably bright? Have you ever had to leave a room because it was too loud? Have you gotten lost in a place because there no accurate signs or ones you could read? Have you ever tried to use the front entrance of a building, but had to navigate to the end of the block to the back entrance is so it could be accessible to you? Have you not been able to get into the train fast enough, because you had children and grocery bags with you? These are all examples of the exclusionary practices in the built form that impact everyday life and effect the way people navigate through the world daily.

“Racist, sexist and ableist thinking exemplified in movements like eugenics had spatial implications, restricting who was included and excluded from American public space at a range of scales” -Joel Saunders, STALLED! 1 Point blank, architectural pedagogy has historically been taught that “good design” is designing spaces based on a standard. This “mythic average norm,” has been historically upheld since it was introduced in the first century BC by Vitruvius. This came out of a European, white, nondisabled, youthful, and masculine form. This “normative template” 2 is how architects and designers are being trained to subconsciously exclude everyone outside of this norm, and are not taught to appreciate diversity in users, and will continue to discriminately design. Who counts as everyone and how to designers know? How do we reframe architectural thinking that has been historically rooted in eugenics, and towards design-thinking that is more inclusionary? This research hopes to discuss disability politics and its relationship to contemporary spatial development. The focus will be on advocating for invisible disabilities and bringing to light techniques and design strategies that can be used to create more inclusive spaces for people with sensory sensitivities- from the lens of people on the Spectrum with Autism. The collection situates disability in its intersection with race and sex, but is no means comprehensive nor complete, and recognizes its focus on invisible disabilities from a privileged western point of view. The collection’s main goal is to bring to light some spatial practices that can allow for more people to have access and recognizes that some strategies do not address race, gender, or class. The built world has disproportionately excluded people of color with disabilities the most through various racist and sexist historical practices. 1 Arning, Bill, MIT List Visual Arts Center. Inside Space: Experiments In Redefining Rooms. Cambridge, Mass: MIT List Visual Arts Center, 2001. Chapter 12, “Stalled! Restrooms” 205-245 2 Hamraie, A. Building Access: Universal Design and the Politics of Disability. 2017. Chapter 1, “Normative Template.” 19-33

Ernest Irving Freese, The Dimensions of the Human Figure, American Architect and Architecture 145 (July 1934): 57–60.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated in 2021 that over 1 billion people live with some sort of disability, which is approximately 15% of the population. Disability, according to WHO, refers to the interaction between individuals with a health condition and personal and environmental factors. 1Disability is a human rights issue, and the biggest areas of improvement are in health care and in the built world. The number of people with disability are dramatically increasing. This is due to demographic trends and increases in chronic health conditions, among other causes. Tangentially, the Center for Disease Control’s 2021 statistics state that 61 million adults in the United States live with a disability. 2This is 26% of the American population, which is over one in four people. There has been historically widespread, systematic, and inhumane discrimination against people with disabilities and only in 1990 did individuals with disabilities given equal rights under the constitution. This was 26 years after the Civil Rights Amendment. The American with Disabilities Act was the first anti-discrimination legislation. The accessibility code was created to make urban development and building design more accessible. The code is predominately based on mobility impairments and is weak on consideration of various lenses. The statistics show that mobility impairments are only 13% of the affected community, where cognition, hearing, vision, and self-care represent the other 87% of diverse abilities. My motivation in this collective is to represent the communities that have not been represented in design, and specifically invisible disabilities. According to the Invisible Disability Society, this is defined as, “a physical, mental, or neurological condition that is not visible from the outside, yet can limit or challenge a person’s movements, senses, or activities. Unfortunately, the very fact that these symptoms are invisible can lead to misunderstandings, false perceptions, and judgments. This includes debilitating pain, fatigue, dizziness, cognitive dysfunctions, brain injuries, learning differences and mental health disorders, as well as hearing and vision impairments.” The collective focuses narrowly on individuals on the Autism Spectrum. In 2021, the CDC reported that approximately 1 in 44 children in the U.S. is diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), according to 2018 data. My brother Cameron has autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and is non-speaking. The way he interacts with space is a lot different than mine, with sensitivity to sound, light, and touch. These sensitivities can cause him to have sensory overload in spaces that was not designed with him in mind. The design implications to include individuals on the autism spectrum include multi-sensory adaptations, which can also begin to include others with cognitive and sensory needs. Everyone has different needs in spaces, and by focusing on multi-sensory architecture, we can hope to provide more inclusive forms that represent and serve our communities better. In pedagogy, inclusionary topics in design against ableism is severely undervalued. Inclusion topics for people with diverse abilities is rarely discussed in design schools, and principles in universal design are only being employed by experts. The established laws in the 1990 of the American Disability Acts needs to be re-addressed for the 21st century community. 1 World Health Organization. (n.d.). Disability and health. World Health Organization. Retrieved April 2, 2022, from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/disability-and-health 2 Colker, R. The Disability Pendulum. NYU Press. 2005.

Anthropometric figures representing disability often depict a wheelchair user and, to a lesser extent, figures using canes or crutches. Charles Ramsey and Harold Sleeper, Architectural Graphic Standards, 7th ed. (New York: Wiley, 1981). Courtesy of Judy A. Crookes, Henry Dreyfuss Associates.

After the American with Disability Act passed in 1990, a school of thought developed called Universal Design, which is where inclusivity in design began to emerge. George Covington and Bruce Hannah are recognized as one of the earliest scholars in this arena, in which they published Access by Design in 1997. They define Universal Design as a designing something for the broadest market as possible, and at its best, is seamless and invisible. “You don’t look at something and say, “that’s designed for…” Oliver Herwig in Universal Design: Solutions for a Barrier-free Living (2008) and Selwyn Goldsmith in Universal Design (2000) follow a similar logic and discuss a “top-down” approach, in which design should consider the most non-abled body (non-mobile senior), and that will begin to include a lot more of the population. On a planning side, Barrier-free Planning (2009) by Skiba and Zuger provide a brief, but comprehensive overview of planning for motor, sensory, cognitive impairments, from the lens of children and the elderly. Both Herwig and Covington and Hannah are focused on the baby boomer-aging population, and frame themselves in thinking about universal design within this framework. By studying seniors, they say, universal strategies can best be implemented. Although these This school of thought of Universal design focuses on mobility and motor design strategies, and leaves out discussions on race, gender, and invisible disabilities. However, these writings, while powerful as foundational pieces, do not address the political failures of ADA codes and standards. Ruth Colker in The Disability Pendulum: The First Decade of the Americans with Disabilities Act discusses the massive disappointment that the ADA has been for the community, in that the courts narrowly define disability, that cases for ADA lawsuits are difficult to pursue. Aimi Hamraie in Building Access: Universal Design and the Politics of Disability (2017) also discusses the various failed lawsuits and the failure of the disability community to include people of color, as well as breaks down and unpacks the Principles of Universal Design and pushes the agenda of the need for disability justice in terms of “Collective Access,” and “Anti-Capital Politic,” for “collective liberation.” Following this thread of more intersectional thinking of the built form comes various voices such as Dolores Hayden work in both “What Would a Non-Sexist City Be Like? Speculations on Housing, Urban Design, and Human Work.” (1980) and Redesigning the American Dream: The Future of Housing, Work, and Family Life (2002) to redesign the American landscape for new types of co-living to create a non-patriarchal society. On a more specific note, to focus on more specific solutions for individuals on the Autism Spectrum, there are various designers and scholars thinking about sensory spaces. These include focusing on light, color, temperature, and sound. Barbara Erwine in Creating Sensory Spaces: The Architecture of the Invisible (2017) frames these spaces in time, movement, and rituals of change, while Maria Lorena Lehman in Adaptive Sensory Environments: An Introduction (2017) takes a more kinetic approach and adaptive spaces to “tune” into occupants, which is a powerful move forward for more inclusive environments. The work in Designing for Autism Spectrum Disorders (2016) offers practical solutions for design strategies, alongside the sensory environments. The new technology, when used in tandem with knowledge of people with sensory sensitivities, can open a new dialogue to create 21st century adaptations to the environment to allow for more justice.

Accessible mobile housing design represented a departure from the single-family suburban home. Barrier Free Environments, Mobile Homes: Alternative Housing for the Handicapped (Washington, D.C.: Department of Housing and Urban Development, 1977), 16.

Accessible apartment buildings and multifamily dwellings not only focused on different users but also addressed new architectural and landscape features. Barrier Free Environments, Accessible Housing: A Manual on North Carolina’s Building Code Requirements for Accessible Housing (Raleigh: North Carolina Department of Insurance, 1980), 35.

Manufacturer of the Huey Saturn drafting desk [ca. late 1970s]) offered progressive depictions of race, gender, and disability, showing disabled people of color and women in professional settings. Ronald L. Mace Papers, MC 00260, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, N.C.

The collective stands in the crossroads of all these scholars. Without the work of early Universal Design scholars and advocates, we could not see the faults, and we would not be at a stage where we can begin intersectional work to move towards equitable environments, truly built for all. The research is structured to provide first, a history of the American Disability Act. The reasons, implications, and outcomes of the passage of this legislation. Then, the research provides a large overview of Universal design. This section of the research began with understanding the concept, theories, and why universal design matters. This overview begins to bring up new questions, which reframes the work to the new issues of the 21st century, such as invisible disabilities, narrowing in on the autism spectrum disorder. Then, the research turns to various case studies to look at spatial strategies for people with ASD. It breaks down the case studies into human scale, domestic space, and public space studies. The research is narrow in the end, as the collective is meant to be a diving board for more research in the future. This collective works to provide a framework to begin creating an inclusive model that requires various perspectives and intersectionality with gender and race. The collective represents that there is not one solution to create better environments, because everyone is different, but there are ways in which we can begin to think about design from various lenses. One of the easiest and most clear redesigning of space has to do with sensory environments and creating different environments for varying usages and abilities but is just the surface. Everyone wants to be included in public space and rethinking who we are designing for is critical to providing designers with a more empathic perspective. We must dismantle design- thinking from the white male abled-bodied patriarchal viewport to begin to create urban environments that are more representative of the population. This collective is just the beginning of my inclusive spatial imaginary. There are politics in the built world to disability as it relates with sex and race historical marginalization of these groups sequentially, as well as a need to redefine public and domestic space with these things in intersection. There is a lot of room for spatial outcomes as it correlates to the Inclusive City. In association to the long term, there could be a comprehensive study of the existing code and propositions for updated codes to reflect the voices of invisible disabilities. There could be entire courses and studios dedicated to this topic. In a small scale, there could be an opportunity to retrofit existing rooms for multi-sensory architecture. To pursue a thesis, my proposal would be to imagine a city block (similar scale to the 7010 studio) and designing it on universal design codes and in a way that applied sensory social spaces that have been discovered in the research. The representation of anti-ableist design is important to the contemporary landscape.

02 American Disabilities Act Regulating access to the physical world The hallmark piece of legislation passed in 1990. This act effectively provided civil rights for disabled people 26 years after the Civil Rights Act.

“Look, I’m not going to pick on an invalid.” —President Ronald Reagan, August 1988 (Response to a reporter’s question about presidential candidate Michael Dukakis) In 1988, the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act was virtually unthinkable. The president of the United States considered it appropriate to describe a presidential candidate as an “invalid.” Yet, in 1990, the president considered it important to support and sign the Americans with Disabilities Act. No longer could public figures appear to be against the rights of individuals with disabilities. Colker, R. (2005). The disability pendulum

President George H. W. Bush signs the Americans with Disabilities Act during a ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House on July 26, 1990.//PHOTOGRAPH BY BARRY THUMMA, AP

“Why I wrote the Americans with Disabilities Act ” By Robert L. Burgdorf Jr. for the Washington Post

The ADA was a response to an appalling problem: widespread, systemic, inhumane discrimination against people with disabilities. In 1971, a New York judge described people with disabilities as “the most discriminated [against] minority in our nation.” Large numbers of children with disabilities were systematically excluded from American public schools. In the early 1970s, according to widely quoted estimates, approximately 1 million school-aged individuals with disabilities were totally excluded from public educational programs, and another 3 million pupils with disabilities attended public schools but were not provided services to meet their basic educational needs. This meant that well over half of all kids with disabilities were not receiving minimally adequate education. State residential treatment institutions for people with disabilities were generally abysmal. Large state facilities, typically located in rural areas with high walls and locked wards that isolated the residents from the rest of society, were primitive and often unsanitary, dangerous, overcrowded and inhumane. A New York court described the conditions at Willowbrook State School in 1972 as: “horrible,” “dreadful,” “sub-human,” “a blot on the conscience,” “not only appalling but frightful,” a place where “the most helpless and defenseless of our citizens were left living on a thread of life … rotting in inadequate warehouses, the living among the dead, the dead among the living.” Most public transportation systems made few, if any, accommodations for persons with disabilities, resulting in a transportation infrastructure that was almost totally unusable by people with mobility or visual impairments – a situation that was mirrored in inaccessible private transportation services including taxis, ferries and private buses. Government buildings, public monuments and parks had generally been designed and built without taking into account the possibility that people with disabilities might want or need to use them. Flat or ramped entrances into stores and businesses were the exception rather than the rule. Curb cuts or ramps on sidewalks were extremely rare, often forcing people who used wheelchairs to make their way on streets, where they faced the peril of being hit by motor vehicles. People with disabilities were routinely denied rights that most members of our society take for granted, including the right to vote (sometimes by state law, other times by inaccessible polling places), to obtain a driver’s license, to enter the courts and to hold public office. Many states had laws prohibiting marriage by, and permitting or requiring involuntary sterilization of, persons with various mental or physical conditions, particularly intellectual disability, mental health conditions and epilepsy. A number of states restricted or denied the right of people with mental disabilities to enter into contracts. Several U.S. cities, including Chicago, Columbus and Omaha, had what became known as “ugly laws” that banned from streets and public places people whose physical condition or appearance rendered them unpleasant for other people to see. These laws were actually enforced as recently as 1974, when a police officer arrested a man for violating Omaha’s ordinance. 12

July 5, 1978, a group of men and women known as the “Gang of 19” blocked buses owned by the Regional Transportation District in Denver’s busiest intersection to call attention to the need for adequate wheelchair-accessible transit. The action was among those nationwide that eventually led to the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990/Denvergov.org

“Boldly Go Where Everyone Else Has Gone Before”

30 Years Later: How the ADA enabled Denver’s Disability Community an emmy-nominated documentary discussing the story and impact of a Denver protest in 1978 in the fight against ableism for the passage of ADA in 1990. By Rowena Algeria, chief storyteller at the City and County of Denver Forty-three years ago this month, a Regional Transportation District driver stopped his bus at the intersection of Colfax Avenue and Broadway to pick up more riders. Before the bus could move on, people in wheelchairs rolled in front of the vehicle. Minutes later, another RTD bus traveling along the same route pulled up behind the first bus, and more people in wheelchairs rolled behind this second bus. Both buses were locked in, bringing traffic in a busy Denver intersection to a standstill. While the buses spent the next 24 hours locked in place, the nineteen protesters chanted, “We will ride!” Disability-rights history changed forever.

As the city changes so quickly, we’re losing so much of the history and flavor of the city. So we’ve made a special effort to find these stories and people who have lived on the margins and don’t typically make headlines, whose stories aren’t old, intending to give them a platform to tell those stories that may help lead to policy change. In June of 2021, in partnership with Denver Film, I Am Denver hosted a panel discussion to dig even deeper into the ongoing struggle for accessibility and disability rights.

Disability rights activist Don Galloway, speaking here to a crowd, sat at the intersection of two marginalized communities demanding equal rights and became an important pioneer in the fight for both disability and racial justice./ DAVE BURESH, THE DENVER POST VIA GETTY IMAGES

“No Equality without Everyone” Beyond Inclusion and Toward Justice

an essay by Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation, July 23, 2020 Five years ago, my Ford Foundation colleagues and I announced that we would commit to disrupting inequality in all its forms. In the weeks that followed this pledge, I received hundreds of emails. Most of them were congratulatory, but a few called my attention to the same oversight: I had failed to acknowledge the pervasive inequalities people with disabilities face every day—and, in turn, a community that has been disregarded for far too long. This piece is part of Disability Demands Justice, a dynamic, ever-evolving hub to deepen our understanding of how disability intersects with social justice. While reflecting on this glaring omission, I revisited a passage from James Baldwin: “Ignorance, allied with power, is the most ferocious enemy justice can have.” I noted, then, that our definition of power must expand to include privilege—the unearned advantages and preferential treatment we receive based on our identities and experiences. I said then—and feel even more strongly today—that our ignorance, when allied with our privilege, can be equally, if not more, detrimental to justice. As an organization devoted to justice, from racial justice to economic justice, our ignorance of the injustices experienced by the disability community was not only unacceptable; it was completely at odds with our mission. Today, as we face the compounding effects of the COVID-19 crisis and the anti-black racism codified in our social systems, we must take an intersectional approach—and when we do, the reality of ableism is undeniable. People with disabilities have been disproportionately affected by this pandemic, whether facing greater risk of contracting the virus or accessing critical support they need at home. Black people with disabilities are subject to police violence, making up between one third and one-half of police killings. At this moment, justice for people with disabilities is not just urgent; it’s a matter of life and death.

Just like race, class, gender identity, sexual orientation, and immigration status, living with a disability is an intersectional identity. We must understand how the inequalities faced by people with disabilities interact with the larger ecosystem of oppression that marginalizes women, low-income people, communities of color, immigrants, and LGBTQ+ people.

A protester speaks out against the murder of Terrence Coleman, a 31-year-old black man with a mental health disability who was fatally shot by police in Boston/ BARRY CHIN, THE BOSTON GLOBE VIA GETTY IMAGES

This means achieving justice will require intersectional solutions—and partnership with the social justice sector. Despite the disproportionate impact of inequality faced by people with disabilities, especially by those who are multiply marginalized, our social justice efforts have historically viewed disability as a medical issue. By doing so, we’ve failed to include people with disabilities in our organizing, hiring, and leadership development. As a sector, we have never fully considered the 1 billion people around the world living with a disability who belong to every identity group.

There can be no justice without disability. Disability demands justice. In fact, a tenet of disability justice, developed by Sins Invalid, holds that “No body or mind can be left behind – only moving together can we accomplish the revolution we require.” It’s time we start recognizing this and pushing ourselves. After all, without reflecting on the many intersections with disability, without integrating that lens into all of our programs and policies, without addressing internalized ableism in our organizations, there will be no justice. And that takes real commitment, time, and hard work. Together, we can break the silence of our collective ignorance and affirmatively declare that rights for people with disabilities are human rights—that disability is social justice.

Design for Independent Living: The Environment and Physically Disabled People (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1979), 10. Courtesy of Raymond Lifchez.

“The story of the first decade of enforcement of the ADA has been one of massive disappointment for the disability rights community... The courts have interpreted the definition of disability narrowly, making it difficult for individuals to be both “disabled” and “qualified” to bring successful ADA lawsuits. The courts have also interpreted the constitutional scope of the ADA so narrowly that it is very difficult for private individuals to bring suits against state actors unless they can allege a constitutional deprivation of due process” Colker, R. (2005). The disability pendulum

1 in 4

people are diagnosed with a disabilty in America.

1 in 4

people are diagnosed with a disabilty in America.

26%

people are diagnosed with a disabilty in America.

imagining a city truly built for all.

1 in 4

people are diagnosed with a disabilty in America.

1 in 4

people are diagnosed with a disabilty in America.

26%

people are diagnosed with a disabilty in America. 21

*statistics from center for disease control, updated 2021

03 Universal Design Universal Design is the concept of design’s ability to be accessed, understood and used to the greatest extent possible by all people regardless of their age, size, ability or disability. The built world should be designed to meet the needs of all people who wish to use it. By considering the diverse needs and abilities throughout the design process, universal design creates products, services and environments that meet peoples’ needs. Universal design has evolved in the industry from a conglomeration of disability-specific design, assistive technology, and human-centered design that grew out of the social and civil justice rights of the 20th century. In pedagogy, inclusionary topics in design against ableism is severely undervalued. Inclusion topics for people with diverse abilities is rarely discussed in design schools, and principles in universal design are only being employed by experts. The established laws in the 1990 of the American Disability Acts needs to be re-addressed for the 21st century community, where onefourth of the population has been diagnosed with some type of disability. “Tomorrow’s society will be older, more varied, and more difficult to narrow down to a consensus. The future will not be won with more equipment and more intelligent features, but with products that make life easier. There will be a fundamental shift in perspectives. We will not develop a more aerodynamic Rollator, but rather build houses and spaces that are accessible for all. The balance shifts the moment the new seniors stop standing in line at the pharmacy holding a prescription, and begin working as salespeople in department stores. Demand creates new products, and choicecreates the market. Studying seniors leads to better designs Because seniors are the toughest testers. If they are happy with a product everyone else will be too. This applies to products used in everyday life as well as to Internet design. Web designers love tiny print, almost tone on tone against a monochrome background, meaning beige on a light brown background or dark gray on light gray. And because it is so cool and aesthetic, most people cannot read it without an electric magnifying glass. But that too will change. What will look old in the future is typeface that is not at least twelve-point in size and not set on a background with enough contrast. The attractive new world of tomorrow will be clearer, simpler, safer. And everyone will benefit from it. Barrier-free houses and objects are a massive step forward.” 1

Herwig, O. (2008). Universal Design: Solutions for a Barrier-free Living. Basel: Birkhäuser.

Until Universal/Inclusive design is infused in pre-professional and continuing education, the attitudes of designers will limit their understanding and appreciation of diversity. They will continue to shape their designs for a mythic average norm, creating barriers that exclude the contributions and participation of people all over the world. Elaine Ostroff, “Universal Design: An Evolving Paradigm.”

ut making buildings safe and convenient for all their users, including people with disabilities.” Selwyn Goldsmith, Universal Design

UNIVERSAL DESIGN QUESTIONS DESIGNERS SHOULD ASK:

Why design something that can’t be used? Why say something that can’t be heard? Why write something that can’t be understood? Why draw something that can’t be seen? Why build something that is inaccessible? Why construct something that can’t be climbed? Why paint something that is invisible? Why sculpt something that can’t be felt? Why bridge something that can’t be crossed? Who are designers designing for? What are designers designing? When are designers designing? How are designers designing? Are designers making life elegant for everyone? How do the blind turn off the lights? How do the deaf listen to music? How do the mute speak? How do the paralyzed feel? How do the tasteless taste? Whose standards are standard? Whose norms are normal? Whose solution is universal? Whose microcosm is worldly? Whose exclusivity is inclusive?

BUT DESIGNERS WILL— Build the Building! Design the Design!. Sculpt the Sculpture! Etch the Etching!

Draw the Drawing! Draft the Drafting! Paint the Painting! Detail the Details! Communicate the Communication! Photograph the Photograph! Film the Film! Plan the Plan! Color the Color! Structure the Structure! Texture the Texture!

BUT DESIGNERS SHOULD ASK— WHO IS THE DESIGN FOR? WHAT IS THE DESIGN PROBLEM? WHERE WILL THE DESIGN BE USED? WHEN WILL THE DESIGN BE USED? HOW WILL THE DESIGN BE USED? UNIVERSAL DESIGN IS POSSIBLE IF THE ANSWERS ARE— EVERYONE UNIVERSALITY! EVERYWHERE ALWAYS! UNIVERSALLY!

Bruce H annah , professor emeritus, Pratt Institute, School ofArt and Design. Universal Design Teach-in, Pratt Institute, January 14, 1994

Accessibility fills requirements written in code. As citizens of the world, we should be designing against ableism. Codes are bare minimum.

Accessible Universal A custom designed home based on an existing plan but requires additional costs for the redesign and custom construction details

A universally designed home plan costs the same as any other plan to build for anyone to purchase

Home modifications services by a contractor who charges more for their specialized knowledge of design for disability and aging

Home improvement services that encorporate universal design as a basic service

Assistive technology used to adapt an automobile display for people with special needs

Automobile instruments and controls customizable to accommodate difference in perceptual abilities, stature, motor abilities, and preference.

A building entry with a ramp at the side that is out of the way for all visitors but is accessible by code

A non step building entry that everyone can use easily and together

A hotel has only code-required percentage of accessible rooms

A hotel that has 100% universally designed rooms in a variety of types.

Steinfeild and Maisel, 2012, p. 69

Figure 7.1. “The Principles of Universal Design,” Version 2.0 (4/1/97). Courtesy of the Center for Universal Design, North Carolina State University.

Hamraie, A. (2017). Building access : Universal design and the politics of disability. University of Minnesota Press. Created from uva on 2022-03-14 17:11:47.

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-----------------------------------Walk-in orientation system National Science Museum in Tokyo by Hiromura Design Office

Users go for it. Why not store information directly on the floor, where it can be immediately felt? The textured surface provides resistance and gives signals: Attention, Information. Please enter.

Herwig, O. (2008). Universal design : Solutions for a barrier-free living. Walter de Gruyter GmbH. Created from uva on 2022-04-16 16:43:30.

Principles of Universal Design V.2.0 4/1997

Universal Access Project 6/6/1995

Donald Norman, The Design of Everyday Things, 1988

1. Equitable Use

1. A product should be fully usable by anyone regardless of physical and/or sensory disabilities.

1. Use both knowledge in the world and knowledge in the head.

2. Flexibility in Use

2. A product should give the user a 7. When all else fails, standardize choice of interface—e.g., graphics, speed, or text options. 6. Whatever is mouse-controlled should also be able to be fully controlled by keyboard use.

3. Simple and Intuitive Use

4. Perceptible Information

2. Simplify the structure of tasks. 3. Raised buttons or tactile controls and labels are usable by both sighted and nonsighted users. 4. Whatever is accessible by visual interface should also be accessible by audio interface. 5. Whatever is accessible by voice, voice recognition, synthesized speech, or any other audio interface should be accessible by visual interface, Baudot (TDD) tones, and/or captioned.

3. Make things visible: bridge the gulfs of Execution and Evaluation 4. Get the mappings right

7. Braille is an option for some, but not for the majority, of blind users. 5. Tolerance for Error 6. Low Physical Effort

6. Design for error 8. Systems requiring user response/ input need to allow enough response time by motor-impaired users—or the option to customize this feature.

5. Exploit the power of constraints, both natural and artificial.

7. Size and Space for Approach and Use Figure 7.3. Intra-actions with other principles.

Hamraie, A. (2017). Building access : Universal design and the politics of disability. University of Minnesota Press. Created from uva on 2022-03-14 17:11:47.

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Ikea Catalog, items to create universal usage

access, but experience demonstrated that there were not enough customers among the population of people with disabilities to maintain such a system on fares alone. These vehicles are now available for all riders as a taxi service.

(a)

(b)

(c)

(d)

Figure 13–7: Bus rapid transit system. The city of Curitiba, Brazil, integrated universal design goals throughout its transit system. (a) Accessible entry to the station. (b) View of station and platforms. (c) View of station with bus loading passengers. (d) People exiting the bus to the station platform. Steinfeld, E., Maisel, J., & Levine, D. (2012). Universal design : Creating inclusive environments. John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated. Created from uva on 2022-04-16 23:26:44.

Product Design

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Figure 12–7: Target’s ClearRX medication bottle. The bottle features large-type on labels and a color-coded ring to identify the type of medication. Source: Image courtesy of Target.

35 .

Another example is the Duracell hearing aid battery package. The miniature batteries presented real usability problems for older people with limited dexterity. Realizing that existing

Product Design

(a)

317

(b)

Figure 12–4: Examples of universal design in products: (a) Automatic can and jar opener. (b) Elevated frontloaded washers and dryers that reduce bending and lifting.

Source: (a) Image courtesy of OneTouch Products, Limited. (b) Image courtesy of Whirlpool.

Europe, where cell phones are being created and advertised specifically for seniors. The Jitterbug, Doro PhoneEasy, and EmporialLife are examples marketed in the United States and Europe (Figure 12–5). All three phones are very simple in design. They have preprogrammed emergency buttons and a well-spaced numeric keypad and have eliminated cameras and games. Of the three phones, Jitterbug is being marketed as a phone that users of all abilities can use, extending the perception of benefits to more people than seniors. In the home electronics industry, automation is simplifying control systems. Everyday frustration and confusion are common when having to learn how to operate too many devices (Norman 2011). Innovations such as the universal remote for controlling multiple devices, Publicdrastically Transportation Design 345 including a television, DVD player, and stereo receiver, reduceand the Universal cognitive load of learning and remembering many different types of operations. The NevoLS, for example, is a unique control that combines both a physical and a digital interface. The physical properties of the remote provide comfortable griping for both small and large hands. Although the touch screen interface increases the complexity of the remote, the physical buttons increase product flexibility by making it possible to use with the traditional buttons or the more sophisticated interface (Wasser 2005). Touch interfaces offer the potential to control other devices and equipment in homes, such as light and temperature, without adding more complexity. Control systems can be “layered” and easily accessed with a gesture. Currently such gadgets are expensive; however, it is only a matter of time before they become affordable. The stand-alone remote control actually may become

Steinfeld, Edward, et al. Universal Design : Creating Inclusive Environments, John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated, 2012. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/uva/detail.action?docID=821663. Created from uva on 2022-04-16 23:16:23.

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Figure 13–1: Information kiosk at a New York City ferry terminal. This kiosk provides information by both visual and audible means.

hts reserved.

Source: Photograph courtesy of Steve Landau

36 only would such signs be difficult to find in large congested spaces, but searching for them would pose significant risk at boarding platforms. Use of internationally recognized ideograms for signs

1 in 4

people are diagnosed with a disabilty in America.

1 in 4

26%

people are diagnosed with a disabilty in America.

What would an inclusive city be? How can designers create spaces that are against being racist, sexist, and ablest? How do we reframe architectural thinking that has been historically rooted in eugenics, and towards inclusionary design-thinking?

1 in 4

people are diagnosed with a disabilty in America.

26%

people are diagnosed with a disabilty in America. *statistics from center for disease control, updated 2021

Let us start with thinking of

Invisible Disabilites

An “invisible,” “non-visible,” “hidden,” “non-apparent,” or “unseen” disability is any physical, mental, or emotional impairment that goes largely unnoticed. We understand the body as always changing, so disability and chronic illness may be unstable or periodic throughout one’s life. An invisible disability can include, but is not limited to:

cognitive impairment and brain injury; the autism spectrum; chronic illnesses like multiple sclerosis, chronic fatigue, chronic pain, and fibromyalgia; Deaf and/or hard of hearing; blindness and/or low vision; anxiety, depression, PTSD, and many more. Invisible Disabilities Project

estimates. For planners, developers, architects, and interior designers, knowing whether a local population is different from that of the country as a whole is very useful. However, it is also important to understand the interaction of such variables as age and income in order to make more informed conclusions and predictions. For example, designers who recognize that both advanced age and low income are associated with higher disability rates will understand that product affordability is as important as good design for aging consumers. In 1979, Steinfeld et al. devised the Enabler concept (Figure 3–2). The Enabler provides, in a simple ideogram, a representation of the population categories served by accessible design that can be used to make population estimates. The categories describe this target population in terms of functional limitation, such as inability to walk, total blindness, difficulty grasping, and extremes of size and weight. Data on the extent of functional limitations are extremely useful for designers because these problems can be related to specific parts of the environment. Unfortunately, although some demographic data is available on functional ability, there are many gaps, even 30 years later. This is due to the fact that the policy missions of government agencies often do not address the needs of the design professions for information. Thus, obtaining and interpreting demographic information on functional limitations that meets the specific needs of designers

Difficulty Interpreting Information

Severe Loss of Sight

Complete Loss of Sight

Severe Loss of Hearing

Prevalence of Poor Balance

Incoordination

Limitations of Stamina

Difficulty Moving Head

Difficulty Reaching with Arms

Difficulty in Handling and Fingering

Loss of Upper Extremity Skills

Difficulty bending, Kneeling, Etc.

Reliance on Walking Aids

Inability to Use Lower Extremities

Extremes of Size and Weight

THE ENABLER

Figure 3–2: Enabler concept. This ideogram represents the population served by accessible design. Steinfeld, E., Maisel, J., & Levine, D. (2012). Universal design : Creating inclusive environments. John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated. Created from uva on 2022-04-16 22:48:49.

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“Dear Friend, That thing you just did — that was ableism. I am sure you did not realize this when you made/laughed at/agreed with that ableist remark, or behaved in that ableist manner. Like racism, sexism, and elitism, ableism is a cultural bias that impacts disabled peoples’ everyday lives. For example, being called a “retard”, “lame”, or “crazy” is offensive to people like me and my friends. Instead, we need safe and accessible spaces in the absence of ableist assumptions for those with no seemingly obvious disability, like mobility, hearing, visual, or affective impairment or chronic illness. I can’t always alert or educate people about my non-visible disability. If I do, it is often considered malingering or controlling, so, instead, I distribute these calling cards to signal when ableist remarks/behaviors arise. If this card causes you discomfort, imagine how much your ableism is causing me discomfort.” Invisible Disability Project designed a card, inspired by Adrian Piper’s My Calling (Card), specifically to call out ableism before we talk about diverse bodies and minds as an inconvenience to any given structure or relationship.

“What Happens When You’re Disabled but Nobody Can Tell.” The author and clinical psychologist Andrew Solomon examines the disabilities that ramps and designated parking spots don’t address. July 2020, New York Times I have depression and anxiety. These conditions are well-controlled most of the time, but when I have a significant dip, no one makes anything easier for me unless I explain it all to them — an unpleasant effort at the best of times and beyond my ken at the worst. When my depression mushrooms, I shun visibility; I walk so close to buildings that my shoulder becomes dirty. Because my intermittent disability is invisible, in the thick of it I have often felt compelled to make myself invisible. I neither anticipate nor receive public compassion. Such social insensitivity is endemic to the lives of people with permanent but invisible disabilities that affect their daily functioning, who are likewise deprived of outer symbols to signal their condition. The word “disability” evokes images of ramps, lower-positioned urinals, grab bars and other allowances in our architectural landscape. But an untold number of people have disabilities — from A.D.H.D. to addictive disorder to lupus — that aren’t necessarily helped by a designated parking spot. A person who walks with a limp but uses no physical support may be jostled on the street like anyone else. An autistic

person, or a person with a mental illness, will often be disdained or even assailed for peculiar or antisocial behavior.

Invisible disabilities can be easier in some ways than physically evident ones, but they can, equally, be more difficult. They have the advantages and disadvantages of secrecy. The Americans With Disabilities Act (A.D.A.), which marks its 30th anniversary this month, requires employers, businesses, public facilities, transportation and telecommunications to make accommodations for a disabled person whose physical or mental impairment interferes with one or more major life activities. While accommodating people with invisible disabilities is mandated by law, what specifically constitutes a disability is opaque, and what constitutes accommodation is just as vague. For many people, the A.D.A. is a broad, blunt tool that does not always serve their specific needs. The Center for Disability Rights (C.D.R.) lists the following invisible disabilities: “learning differences, deafness, autism, prosthetics, Traumatic Brain Injury (T.B.I.), mental health disabilities, Usher syndrome, bipolar disorder, diabetes, A.D.D./A.D.H.D., fibromyalgia, arthritis, Alzheimer’s, anxiety, sleep disorder, Crohn’s disease, and many more.” Post-traumatic stress disorder, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and cystic fibrosis are other invisible disabilities. The C.D.R. cautions, “Unless it is disclosed, no one knows for sure whether someone has an invisible disability.” 42

Because of the issue of disclosure, there is no way to track the number of people with such disabilities. There are rough approximations of the number of people with, for example, lupus or cystic fibrosis, but some of those people may view themselves as substantially disabled while others may not. According to one estimate from the World Health Organization, about a billion people worldwide are disabled. Of the 61 million adults in the United States with a disability, a census report found, only around 6 percent use visible supports such as a wheelchair or cane. The online resource Disabled World has suggested that 10 percent of Americans have some sort of invisible disability, including people with chronic medical conditions. In the time of Covid-19, these numbers are certain to grow as people confront increasing physical and mental health issues. Societal reactions to hidden disabilities can be harsh. Some parents of autistic children say that it is difficult to be in public with a neurotypical-seeming child who suddenly experiences a huge meltdown because of apparent sensory overload. People stop and stare, offer unsolicited advice or reprimand the parents for their presumed abuse or indifference in the face of their child’s outrageous behavior. People with schizophrenia have been spared some opprobrium by the invention of cellphones and earbuds: It can be hard to tell on the street who is engaged in imaginary conversation with nonexistent people. Yet while people with untreated psychoses are seldom dangerous, their behavior can be erratic and jarring, and because it is not always understood as being rooted in a mental health condition, it often provokes unpleasantness, even violence.

We don’t question whether people with profound mobility challenges can run down the corridor to get the door; we don’t ask people on crutches to participate in a dance (though some people who use them can do so). But what are we to make of someone who has to be insulated from extreme stress because she has epileptic seizures when she is strung out? What do we do with someone whose clinical depression prevents him from working efficiently on bad days? The pandemic may add to the ranks of the disabled. After this time of anguish, many people will want to return to the ostensible (and illusory) social norm of “ability” and robust well-being; we fear disability and illness now more than ever. bear the burden of secrecy. This strategy of personal concealment serves no advantage at all: not for the person affected, for the employer or for a society deprived of the very real contributions people with invisible disabilities would otherwise stand to make.

“You are the stars and the world is watching you. By your presence you send a message to every village, every city, every nation. A message of hope. A message of victory: “The right to play on any playing field? You have earned it. The right to study in any school? You have earned it. The right to hold a job? You have earned it. The right to be anyone’s neighbor? You have earned it.” The days of segregation and separation are over! “ - Eunice Kennedy Shriver Charge to the Athletes at the Opening Ceremonies of the International Summer Special Olympics Games, South Bend, Indiana, August 2, 1987

05 Autism Spectrum Disorder

Eunice Kennedy celebrates with an athlete at the third Special Olympics Games. UCLA, California. 1972. Courtesy of the Special Olympics

Repetitive and Restricted Behaviors

people have a mind like a flashlight, with an area of high focus, and a larger area of partial awareness; my mind is more like a laser pointer, that highlights only a single small dot.” 28 Table 1.1 lists examples of symptoms that individuals with autism may face related to sensory processing and whether the symptoms qualify as hypo-sensitive or hyper-sensitive. Out of the list of sensory processing deficits in Table 1.1, children with ASD appear to exhibit auditory and tactile processing difficulties the most.29

Table 1.1

Individuals with ASD also exhibit repetitive, rigid behaviors. These kinds of behaviors are defined as repetitive, sometimes self-injurious body movements, compulsive behaviors, and limited, almost obsessive interests.30 Self-injurious behaviors, like head banging, are also called “stimming.” These can be dangerous both to the individual and to other individuals nearby.31, 32 Other examples of

Hyper- and Hypo-Sensitive Symptoms of ASD.

Sense

Hypo-sensitive

Hyper-sensitive

Auditory (Sound)

Does not respond when name is called;

Overly sensitive to loud noises;

Enjoys strange noises;

Appears to hear noises before others;

Enjoys making loud, excessive noises

Cannot function well with background noise

Touches people and objects unnecessarily;

Avoids wearing certain fabrics;

Has abnormally high pain threshold (does not appear to be hurt after a hard fall);

Becomes distressed during grooming;

Does not appear to feel extreme temperatures

Reacts negatively to being touched

Tactile (Touch)

Visual (Sight)

Vestibular (Motion)

Smell/Taste (Olfactory)

Does not Iike being wet or going barefoot;

Disregards people or objects in environment;

Bothered by bright Iights (covers eyes or squints);

Can see only outlines of certain objects;

Easily distracted by movement;

Likes bright colors and bright sunlight

Stares at certain people or objects

Moves around unnecessarily;

Seems unbalanced;

Enjoys spinning in circles; Becomes excited about any task involving movement

Becomes distressed when upside-down or when feet leave the ground

Some reports of Pica or eating non-food substances;

Picky eater;

“Feels” objects with mouth;

WiII only eat foods with certain textures, with particular smelIs, or at a certain temperature

Seeks out strong smells; Oblivious to some scents

Proprioception (Sense of body’s location)

Unaware of body position in space and body sensations Iike hunger;

Odd bodiIy posture;

Often lean against people or objects

Difficulty manipulating small objects

Uncomfortable in most positions;

Source: Gaines, K., Bourne, A., Pearson, M., & Kleibrink, M. (2016). Designing for Autism Spectrum Disorders. New York: Routledge.

Introduction to Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) Chapter 01 from Designing for Autism Spectrum Disorders by Gaines, Person, and Kleibrink. 2016

Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders are part of a growing population that is usually ignored in design. The needs of those with ASD are excluded entirely from all building codes and design guidelines. This is a serious concern, since these individuals are more sensitive to their physical surroundings than the average person. When an individual is unable to understand or adapt to their environment, negative behaviors typically ensue. Although the surrounding environment has such a strong influence over people with ASD, there is very little information on how to design spaces for these individuals. Another prominent challenge involved in designing spaces for individuals with ASD is that no two cases are alike. ASD is referred to as a spectrum disorder because each individual has different symptoms, different sensitivities, and a different level of functioning. Symptoms vary from mild to severe; some children on the spectrum have intellectual disabilities or impaired speech, while others do not. Ideally, spaces would be designed for each individual case and the space would accommodate each unique symptom but also help individuals with ASD build a tolerance to environmental stimuli. McCallister states that environments for individuals on the spectrum should prepare them for the challenges and problems they will face in everyday life: “Cocooning the ASD pupil from all external factors will not necessarily help them reach their full potential in life. Therefore, designers should not overly cater to users with ASD and create unrealistic environments that will leave them unprepared to face other environments. Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are particularly sensitive to the surrounding environment, primarily because of sensory processing deficits. For many, sensory processing deficits, such as sensitive eyesight or hearing, can make the built environment a distracting and even frightening place. In her autobiography, Temple Grandin described autism as “seeing the world through a kaleidoscope and trying to listen to a radio station that is jammed with static at the same time. Add to that a broken volume control, which causes the volume to jump erratically from a loud boom to inaudible.” Many individuals on the spectrum employ coping mechanisms in the form of rigid and repetitive behaviors to deal with incoming sensory stimuli. To an outsider, these behaviors appear like an inappropriate tantrum when in actuality, they are the result of an “imbalance between the environment and an individual’s ability to adapt to it.” Architecture and interior spaces can be modified to positively influence the behavior individuals with ASD often exhibit by modifying factors such as color, texture, sense of closure, orientation, acoustics, ventilation, etc. 48

Table 4.1

Behavioral Characteristics Associated with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

Behavioral Characteristics of Population Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) Is a complex Neurobiological Disorder DEFINITION

•

defined by a “triad” of deficits (Volkmar, 2005) in: –

BEHAVIOR

communication, social interaction, and repetitive behavior. The signs vary enormously among individuals; hence the term spectrum is used to reflect the wide range of occurrence and severity of these difficulties.

•

Difficulties in sensory integration (larocci and McDonald, 2006), receive information about a space based on all of their senses collectively: smell, sight, taste, sound, touch, and proprioception—interference with comprehending how to act (Iarocci and McDonald, 2006).

•

Experience synesthesia—i.e. smelIing a color.

COMMUNICATION •

Delayed or lack of ability to use speech for social communication or the use of speech in a non-functional manner.

Sensory Integration: GESTALT PERCEPTION •

A weak central coherence involves the inability to integrate details into a meaningful whole (Mostafa, 2008).

•

Focus on parts rather than the whole (Kanner, 1943).

•

Memory is often stored as an unprocessed, un-interpreted image (Bogdashina, 2003).

PERIPHERAL PERCEPTION •

Prefer indirect eye contact—mono-processing; forcing eye-contact may lead to sensory overload or system shutdown (Jackson, 2002, p70).

HYPO-SENSITIVE •

Appear to be under-responsive, as if certain sensory information goes unnoticed or certain senses are impaired.

HYPER-SENSITIVE •

Over-responsive to sensory stimuli and overwhelmed by incoming sensory information (Bogdashina, 2010); “the intense world syndrome.”

•

Inability to regulate volume; difficulty using an appropriate speaking volume or volume when Iistening to music or watching television, either too loud or too quiet, regardless of the presence of background noise (Talay-Ongan and Wood, 2000).

•

Repetitive speech and excessive noises (Echolalia) (Grandin, 2006).

•

Delayed processing of stimuli from any sensory stimulus and misunderstanding true meaning; takes communication literally; misunderstands idioms.

Source: Gaines, K., Bourne, A., Pearson, M., & Kleibrink, M. (2016). Designing for Autism Spectrum Disorders. high threshold for response to stimuli.8 SID is responsible for selftheir eyes and ears, for example, can make the built environment New York: Routledge.

injury, self-stimulation, and stereotypic behaviors among people with autism due to faulty integration of sensory information.9 These maladaptive behaviors are used to counteract the restricted sensory input or to avoid over-stimulation. Sensory integration is also referred to as sensory processing. People with ASD are sensitive to the environment they encounter, as they have difficulty with the process of managing the information they get from the world.10 Often the manner in which they perceive

a distracting and even frightening place. These sensory inhibitions are suspected to be the reason many people with ASD find social engagements challenging given “looking and listening remains the most important activities for exploring the physical and social environment.”11 Many individuals within the spectrum employ coping mechanisms in the form of rigid and repetitive behaviors to deal with incoming sensory stimuli. To an outsider, these behaviors appear like an inappropriate tantrum, when in actuality, they are

Introduction to Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) Cont.

Background/History Autism is a developmental disorder that affects the functioning of the brain. Individuals with ASD are identified as having difficulty with social interaction, communication skills, and as having a small range of interests. IQ levels of individuals on the spectrum can vary in range from gifted to severe mental disabilities. At the mild end of the spectrum, ASD may be nearly indistinguishable from the general public. These individuals are commonly referred to as high functioning. Others with ASD exhibit severe or life-threatening behaviors. Self-injurious behavior is uncommon in individuals with ASD, but may include head banging or biting oneself. According to recent reports, cases of Autism Spectrum Disorders are on the rise. Some of the more recent statistics indicate that one in 68 children is diagnosed with ASD. This number has risen from approximately three per 1,000 children in the 1990s. Similar increases have also been documented in Japan, Europe, and the UK. Whether the increase is due to ASD becoming more prevalent or because autism awareness and detection has broadened is unknown. Some researchers believe the rise is because the diagnostic criteria for ASD now include pervasive developmental disorder (PDD) and Asperger’s syndrome. Whatever the reason, the increase in reported cases qualifies as a serious public health concern. Some fear the rise in cases could lead to an ASD epidemic. There are a variety of treatments but, at present, no known cure. Experts do not yet fully understand how or why the disorder even occurs. Sensory Processing Individuals with ASD often have abnormal responses to incoming sensory information from the surrounding environment. Typically, people receive information about a space based on all of their senses collectively: smell, sight, taste, sound, and touch. This ability is known as sensory integration and is essential to achieve a coherent perception of a situation and to decide how to act. However, people with ASD have deficits in sensory integration due to the inability to process information from several senses at once.

This may be manifested through being hyper-sensitive to stimuli or being hypo-sensitive (under-reactive) to stimuli. Rapid shifting of attention between two different stimuli is difficult, and abnormal sensory processing can cause individuals with ASD to demonstrate unusual behaviors. Additionally, a dysfunction in this sensory integration may result in language delays and academic under-achievement. There are some reports of sensory perception deficits in which sounds are perceived as smells or colors. Hypo- and Hyper-sensitivity Generally, individuals with ASD are either hypo-sensitive or hyper-sensitive to certain information pertaining to smell, sight, taste, sound, or touch. There are also instances of hyper- or hypo-sensitivities in vestibular movement and proprioception, or the ability to sense the position of the body in space. Hypo-sensitive cases appear to be under-responsive, as if certain sensory information goes unnoticed or certain senses are impaired. Young children who were later diagnosed with ASD and had hypo-sensitive auditory tendencies were often thought to be deaf as infants. Hypo-sensitive cases are often qualified as “sensory-seeking,” meaning they often create or generate their own sensory experiences either for pleasure or to block out other unpleasant stimuli. Conversely, hyper-sensitive cases are over-responsive to sensory stimuli. Children with hyper-sensitivity can be easily overwhelmed by incoming sensory information. The environment can be terrifying at times because loud or sudden noises feel physically painful to hyper-sensitive individuals. Some experts believe that this kind of sensory overload is experienced more among individuals with Asperger’s syndrome than other individuals on the spectrum. A common occurrence among people with ASD is the inability to use all of the senses at one time and when attempting to use more than one sense, sensory overload occurs. Sometimes these individuals need an “anchor” for their environment: “I had to feel something that stood still, something anchored, in a world that had suddenly become totally unpredictable.”

beginnings

Table 4.2

Common Difficulties with Sensory Systems: Observable Behaviors.

COMMON DIFFICULTIES WITH SENSORY SYSTEMS: OBSERVABLE BEHAVIORS HYPER-REACTIVE BEHAVIOR INDICATORS

HYPO-REACTIVE BEHAVIOR INDICATORS

AUDITORY SYSTEM •

easily distracted by background sounds

•

does not respond to name being spoken

•

overreacts to sounds

•

seems oblivious to sounds of surrounding activities

•

unpredictable reactions to sounds

•

creates constant sounds as if to stimulate self

•

holds hands over ears to block noise

•

screams or cries at sounds in the environment

unsafe because does not react to sounds indicating potential danger

•

responds physically as if sound is a threat

•

does not respond to any kind of sound

VISUAL SYSTEM •

disturbed by bright lighting

•

unaware of the presence of other people

•

avoids sunlight

•

unable to locate desired objects, people

•

follows any movement in the room with eyes

•

loses sight of people or objects when they move

•

blocks field of vision with eyes

•

cannot distinguish figure–ground relationships

•

covers part of visual field—puts hands over part of the page in a book

•

responds physicalIy to appearance of certain objects or colors

TACTILE SYSTEM •

touch defensive—does not like to be touched

•

does not seem to grasp concept of personal space

•

avoids tasks with strong tactiIe element (clay, water play, paint, food preparation)

•

does not seem to notice touch of others

•

complains about discomfort of clothing

•

frequently puts things into mouth

•

refuses to wear certain items—tugs at clothes

•

does not adjust clothing that would seem to be an irritant

•

responds negatively to textures in foods, toys, furniture

•

high pain threshold, unaware of danger because of low response to pain

VESTIBULAR SYSTEM •

overreacts to movement activities

•

seems to need constant movement

•

has difficulties navigating on different surfaces (carpets, grass, etc.)

•

rocks, travels in circles

•

walks close to walI, clings to supports such as banisters

•

seems to tire easily when engaged in movement activities

•

seems to be fearful when movement is expected, muscles seem tense

•

generally slow to move, lethargic in movement

•

takes long time to respond to directions to move

•

rigid about positioning of body, keeps head in same rigid angle

•

seems to become physically disoriented easily

GUSTATORY and OLFACTORY SYSTEMS •

eats a limited variety of foods

•

seems to be constantly wanting food

•

gags, refuses foods

•

licks objects in the environment

•

difficulties with oral hygiene

•

chews on objects inappropriately

•

spits out foods, medications

•

overreacts to smells in environment

high threshold for bad tastes—dangerous substances are not avoided

•

smell-defensive—will avoid places or people with strong odors

•

sniffs objects and people in unusual ways

•

does not seem to notice smells others notice

Source: Gaines, K., Bourne, A., Pearson, M., & Kleibrink, M. (2016). Designing for Autism Spectrum Disorders. New York: Routledge.

Introduction to Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) Cont.

Individuals with ASD are often slow in shifting focus between visual stimuli and auditory stimuli. One individual on the spectrum reported a similar dilemma in that he was unable to use more than one sense at a time: “Most people have a mind like a flashlight, with an area of high focus, and a larger area of partial awareness; my mind is more like a laser pointer, that highlights only a single small dot.” Table 1.1 lists examples of symptoms that individuals with autism may face related to sensory processing and whether the symptoms qualify as hypo-sensitive or hyper-sensitive. Out of the list of sensory processing deficits in Table 1.1, children with ASD appear to exhibit auditory and tactile processing difficulties the most. Repetitive and Restricted Behaviors Individuals with ASD also exhibit repetitive, rigid behaviors. These kinds of behaviors are defined as repetitive, sometimes self-injurious body movements, compulsive behaviors, and limited, almost obsessive interests. Self-injurious behaviors, like head banging, are also called “stimming.” These can be dangerous both to the individual and to other individuals nearby. Other examples of hese kinds of repetitive behaviors are finger and hand flicking, rocking, or tapping objects. Many children with high-functioning autism or Asperger’s syndrome seem to exhibit more repetitive, self-injurious behaviors and tantrums than other individuals on the autism spectrum One study found that children who exhibit unusual sensory responses were much more likely to also have repetitive behaviors. These behaviors could be the child’s attempt to either generate a sensory experience or to try to maintain control over their environment after sensory overload has taken place. Often, these behaviors are comforting to the child when an environment is overwhelming. In Asperger’s syndrome, where difficulty with auditory processing is a common occurrence, repetitive behaviors may be the child’s way of staying in control or keeping a grip on their environment when they miss an important auditory clue and become distressed. Also quite common among individuals on the spectrum is the desire for a predictable environment. Stimming is repetitive and predictable and may be a way to block out complex and confusing sensory stimuli.

Narrow interests also fall under the category of repetitive behaviors. A fascinating occurrence is that children with ASD sometimes show remarkable talent and mastery of particular interests, including music, math, or chess. Younger children or children that are on the lower functioning end of the spectrum may show an almost obsessive preference for a particular object such as dinosaurs, trains, or baseball. Though these interests can often be a distraction, they can also be used to calm a child or used as a reward for successfully completing homework or doing a chore. Repetitive, rigid behaviors also include insistence on sameness in routine and physical environment. This involves adherence to certain routines or rituals, insistence on the same foods, and wearing only certain types of clothing. nsistence on sameness can translate to details as small as the order of items on a bookshelf. Individuals with ASD can become quite upset if their routine is disrupted. Like communication problems, these strong preferences for predictability may also be caused by sensory processing abnormalities. People on the spectrum may dislike being touched or trying new foods because it is uncertain or unreliable but might enjoy touching others or eating only foods with certain textures because it is predictable and familiar. Similarly, younger children might have strong preferences for theme songs, certain melodies, or other sounds and desire to hear them repeatedly. One explanation for this insistence on sameness and other rigid thinking is the Theory of Executive Function. Executive functions have to do with cognitive processes like concentration, planning, and attention, and most individuals with ASD are thought to have a lack of control over their executive functions. Executive dysfunction in ASD is the reason many individuals on the spectrum have trouble reorienting attention from one task to another and become distressed when routine is disrupted. Poor executive functions lead to poor impulse control, disorganized and inflexible thoughts or actions, and inappropriate, out-of-context behavior.

Source: Psychology of Color, UXDesign

Red: Stimulates the mind, increases circulation and appetite Blue: Calming, reduces blood pressure Bright yellow: Reflects light, can overstimulate Pale yellow: Calming Green: Soothing, associated with nature and creativity Orange: Can overstimulate and agitate Light pink or rose: Soothing

Introduction to Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) Cont.

The Importance of Designing for Autism Spectrum Disorders and Other Developmental Disabilities

Table 5.3 Applications of the Elements of Design in the Built Environment.

Element

Application

ASD is a complicated neurological disorder, and there may never be a time where it is completely understood. Individuals on the spectrum are part of a growing population that is usually ignored in design, even though architects and designers are responsible for accommodating the needs of all users. This book applies evidence-based design methods to a wide range of everyday environments. Designing spaces for individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) can be a way to improve quality of life, foster independence, and ensure safety. The methods outlined in this book will help individuals on the spectrum despite their level of functioning or prevalence of particular symptoms and make the environment safer, more organized, and more comfortable for the user. These symptoms of ASD should not be stifled by parents and designers. These symptoms do not necessarily need to be embraced, but accepted and, if possible, turned into something positive. For example, individuals that are sensory-seeking should not always be discouraged. Instead they should be well-supervised and allowed to play, touch, feel, taste, and smell. Individuals with ASD can be taught what is safe and appropriate and still be allowed to be themselves.

Space

Positive space is filled with color, texture, form, or mass through walls, furnishings, and graphics. Negative space is empty space surrounding positive space — the windows between walIs, space between furniture pieces.

Design professionals, educators, and parents must be aware of the sensory dysfunction experienced by individuals with ASD in order to provide appropriate environments. The underlying premise of this book is that systemic, empirical research combined with pragmatic approaches to design development can contribute to the planning and management of environments that enhance organizational effectiveness. This book will serve as a valuable tool for professionals involved in designing, building, developing, and administering the design of physical environments for individuals with ASD throughout the lifecycle. Educators and parents will also benefit from the contents. Environmental design theories, symptoms of ASD, and design solutions for a variety of spaces will be addressed.

Spaces should be closed off or divide up rooms with partition furnishings. Minimize visual distractions by avoiding open spaces. Use spatial sequencing or zoning. Provide opportunities to clean up clutter, remove from sight. Shape and Form

Shape and form may be seen throughout the environment in furnishings, Iighting, etc.

Mass

Massing is grouping components to give a more solid appearance.

Line

Lines form the walIs, floors and ceiIing of a room. Examples include a ceiling or floor pattern, or bookshelves.

Texture

Walls, floors, and furniture have rough or smooth texture.

mass, line principles may be p through t materials good des Possib for indivi Although inclusive. of the sev and prop

Finishes that reflect Iight and create glare should also be avoided such as matte paints, wall coverings and surfaces. For example: Carpet instead of highly polished tile. Pattern

Pattern may be seen in fabric, carpet, wall, and floor coverings.

Light

Two sources: Natural and artificial light.

Practica

In order into the embrace Using sta team the the learn First, included represent were fun process w team tou unexpect and the C kid-friend some of t the exter a focus g and appr palette w sexes. Fin Faison Sc of “Autism and com discovery the final d

Correctly placed windows and skylights are necessary to prevent undesirable solar heat gain and visual discomfort. Appropriate window coverings will also help to control harsh natural light and resulting glare/ reflections. Lighting should be flexible (dimmers, multiple switches). Color

Walls, floors, and decorative elements where color may be applied. Personal preference is important. For the visually hyper-sensitive bright colors and bold patterns can be distracting and painful. Softer hues, neutral colors, subtler patterns/ textures. Most research indicates that light, warm, neutral colors are best (Vogel, 2008). Colors found in nature are most soothing. Visually hypersensitive individuals can focus on extraneous detail and become distressed by high amounts of color. For visually hypo-sensitive students, color can be used for wayfinding or as a tool to locate objects in the classroom. For example, colored tape can be used to delineate pathways around the room.

Source: Whiterkiekter, Healing Architecture in a Psychiatric clinic at Södra Älvsborg Hospital (SÄS)

06 Spatial strategies for Autism Spectrum Disorder

Source: Manhattan Apartment, New York Times

into account eight factors noted in this legend. Floor plan 10.11 is for Rio Grande High School and the floor plan below is for the Albuquerque Public Schools ISP Prototype (Design Plus is the Specialized Design Consultant, Vigil & Assoc. is the Architect of Record). The legend in Figure 10.10 is applied to Figures 10.11 and 10.12.

10.12 (facing page, bottom) Sensory Floor Plan. Intensive Support Hub, Albuquerque Public Schools Prototype, Albuquerque, NM

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Source: Gaines, K., Bourne, A., Pearson, M., & Kleibrink, M. (2016). Designing for Autism Spectrum Disorders. New York: Routledge.

Sensory Strategies-Best Practices Design Plus Architects, Sensory Approach

Psychology of color

Curved walls for better perception

Wayfinding - Clear Visuals

Wayfinding- Sight impaired

Source: Dr. Upali Nanda is a Principal and Director of Research at HKS. 59

The Body Scale The Sensory Cacoon/ HKS The Hub was designed to understand better what students need from a sensory room. The Hub is organized into three zones: active, respite and cocoon (a free-standing microstructure). The design is completely freestanding, comprised of metal scaffolding that resembles a high-tech playset, built with readily available materials. The Hub’s purpose is not to entertain, but to calm students and help them “reset” from stressful states of over- or under-stimulation, recover from sensory stressors and refocus on classroom learning. The Hub is made up of freestanding Wall Modules where various features hang on adaptable panels as sensory interventions: engaging musical instruments, a Light Brite wall, soothing fidget toys, and other interactive and virtual elements. Other interventions are provided unanchored throughout such as a weighted blanket and bean bag, trampoline, and a spun chair. The Sensory Cocoon, prototyped first in the HKS Lab by our research and fabrication team, enables students to escape an overstimulating environment and darken their surroundings in solitude. After designing and installing the Sensory Well-being Hub, HKS studied how high school students used it. With the support of an ASID Transformation Grant, our research team created a sensor network to track student responses to sensory input in real-time, without intrusion. The sensor and observational data informed critical concepts for designing spaces for sensory well-being, and our next-generation design for a sensory cocoon, with the overarching goal to create an affordable, scalable and replicable prototype for application in other schools and public spaces, anywhere in the world.

Source: Tom Harris, American Society of Interior Designers 60

Source: Eric Bronson, Michigan photography

Social Sensory Architecture by Sean Ahlquist, from Lab for Material Architectures

Social Sensory Architectures is an on-going research project led by Sean Ahlquist at the University of Michigan to design technology-embedded multi-sensory environments for children with autism spectrum disorder. The research involves the development of therapies which utilize the reinforcing capabilities of a multi-sensory experience for skill-building tasks related to fine/gross motor control and social interaction. Through the use of advanced textile design, sensing technology and bespoke software, complex textile landscapes are transformed into physically, visually and sonically interactive environments. The research was spurred initially by Ahlquist’s observations of his daughter Ara, who has autism along with specific issues such as non-verbal communication, sensory-seeking and hypotonia. The research integrates the fields of architecture, structural engineering, computer vision, human-computer interaction, psychiatry and kinesiology. Initial development took place, through a Research Through Making seed-funding grant from the University of Michigan - College of Architecture and Urban Planning, involving collaborators from the University of Michigan Departments of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science and the School of Music. Currently, the research involves collaboration with Costanza Colombi of the Department of Psychiatry, and Dale Ulrich sand Leach Ketcheson from the School of Kinesiology, supported by an interdisciplinary MCubed grant from the University of Michigan. Various prototypes are currently being piloted, through involvement with local centers working with children with autism, to measure the development of skills in grading of movement and identification of opportunities for social interactions. Nexus of sensorial, movement and social function This research explores the interconnection between the domains of movement, social function and communication. Touch, a primary method for rudimentary nonverbal communication, involves the whole of the somatosensory system to produce the range and nuances for interpersonal interaction. Gestures and facial expressions function via feedback from stretch receptors of the skin and muscles in the hands and arms. Where abnormalities in the somatosensory system exist, often common for children with autism, there is a correlation with reduced abilities for social attention and impairments in nonverbal communication (Foss-Feig et al. 2012). Children who experience limitations in motor skills are shown to have fewer opportunities for social interaction with peers, correlating with lower levels of physical activity (MacDonald et al. 2014). In comparison with children having speech-language impairments or learning disabilities, those with autism are approximately 50% less likely to be invited to social activities and 450% more likely to never see friends (Shattuck et al. 2011).

Source: Sensory[SOFTWARE] - Framework for the sensory architecture prototypes, interconnecting textile structures with the Microsoft Kinect and bespoke software programmed in Unity. Eric Bronson, Michigan photography

Social Sensory Architecture Cont.

sensory[STRUCTURE] | stretch[SOFTWARE] The prototypes developed in this research are designed with the two primary and interchangeable components: (a) the textile-based STRUCTURE as a two-dimensional surface or a three-dimensional environment, and (b) the SOFTWARE which drives the sensing of touch and pressure through the Microsoft Kinect and produces the visual and auditory interface developed through Unity. The three-dimensional environments are generated through Prof. Ahlquist’s research in textile-hybrid structures. These are tent-like systems formed through the interaction of textiles, stretched in tension, and glass-fiber reinforced rods, stressed through bending. A key facet, in this research, for creating these structures is the use of industrial computer-numerically-controlled (CNC) knitting technology. This enables the design and production of large-scale seamless textiles that serve to structure the prototypes, form fluid spatial landscapes for play and produce the elastic, tactile interface. The software, developed in the programming environment Unity, embeds the visual and auditory interactivity through the use of projection, sensing captured with the Microsoft Kinect, and the design of custom interfaces. The depth-mapping capabilities of the Kinect are utilized to identify moments where the geometry of the surfaces is altered based upon someone interacting with the textiles. This functions as a stand-alone algorithm that is scalable in terms of working equally on a planar surface or a complex 3D landscape. Therefore, the myriad of interfaces being developed can be prototyped on any configuration of textile surfaces. This enables an examination of which modes of interaction are focused towards developing skills in motor planning or more amenable to social play. sensorySURFACE The sensorySURFACE | stretchCOLOR prototype focuses on developing skills in fine motor control, particularly the ability to grade movement. Grading of movement is a part of the proprioceptive sense which processes information to both understand the position of limbs and body in space and dictate appropriate movement based upon particular stimuli. Dysfunction in proprioception relates to improper processing of information received through muscles, skin, and joints, accompanied by similar issues related to the tactile sense (Kranowitz, 2005). Relating to Ara’s particular profile, she is defined as a “sensory seeker.” This results in the need for deep pressure applied at the joints along with more significant skin contact in order to register and trigger a proprioceptive response. Consequently, the proprioceptive response is quite crude, meaning the amount of movement or fine motor control will be inappropriate (either too much or too little) for a particular task. The elasticity in relation to touch and pressure is a key criterion for the design of the textile and visual responsiveness in the stretchCOLOR software. Strong resistance in the textile triggers pressure in the joints providing a better chance for the tactility to be identified, subsequently also providing a calming effect (Grandin, 1992). The visual serves to reiterate and magnify the tactile experience. The color being projected onto the textile surface at the location of touch, is an indicator for the amount of pressure being applied. A deeper touch shifts the color output. Holding at a specific depth triggers the color swatch to grow, rewarding patient, controlled movement with the ability to color a large portion of the canvas with only a single touch.

Source: Ara playing with the sensoryPLAYSCAPE | stretchSWARM prototype which combines textile-hybrid technology with an interface for interacting with swarms of fish. Eric Bronson, Michigan photography

Social Sensory Architecture Cont.

sensoryPLAYSCAPE Variable experiences of tactility and movement are the primary design drivers in this research, seeking to encourage and positively reinforce moments of social interaction. With the sensoryPLAYSCAPE prototype in particular, textile elasticity and spatial organisation defines responsiveness at multiple scales and intensities. The prototype elicits three primary modes of interaction. First, physical exploration, or gross motor movement, is driven by the seamless interconnection of contoured surficial and volumetric geometries. Second, responsiveness to fine motor movements exists in the elastic forgiveness of the knitted textile, a consequence of yarn quality, stitch structure and the distribution of tensile forces. This is expressed in the balance of stretch and resistance at the touch of the hand, or in the encompassing contact between body and textile within the volumetric spaces. Lastly, movement and tactile sensation are augmented with visual and auditory feedback. Like the sensorySURFACE prototype, the multi-sensory feedback seeks to magnify tactile and proprioceptive sensation and, subsequently, positively reinforce specific actions. The stretchANIMATE software triggers animations to play across the structure when the textile surfaces are touched at key locations. With the trigger points initially hidden, grand movements are encouraged. Moving across the entirety of the structure in search of the triggers subsequently helps provide more sustained tactile sensation. Alternatively, certain animations are activated through simultaneously touching two trigger points. Such points are positioned far enough apart in order to require two individuals to communicate and coordinate their interaction. The stretchSWARM works with the more dynamic movement of objects around points of engagement with the textile. A brief touch disturbs a swarming school of fish, while a long touch drives them to attract and swarm around the point of interaction. A deeper touch expands the radius of the swarming activity, responding to children’s interest in climbing into the structure and using their entire body to define the point of interaction. Sensorial Architecture This on-going research provides the foundation for an architecture which sets the sensorial experience as the primary performative constraint by which material, spatial, visual and sonic landscapes are instrumentalized. Yet, perception of space and time, in its social and environmental constituents, is largely atypical for children with autism. In response, those that engage the architecture are given considerable agency to actively and dynamically articulate the material and immaterial natures. Performance of the prototype is defined by the measured understanding of the physiological and sociological human behaviors that occurs within it. The manner in which the architecture is transformed communicates the individualized nature of the socio-sensorial experience.

Source: PANTON DESIGN, BASEL. VERNER PANTON WITH FAMILY IN THE LIVING TOWER (1968/69, PRODUZIERT VON 1969-1970: VITRA/ HERMANN MILLER, CH). COURTESY OF VITRA DESIGN MUSEUM

Visiona II Fantasy Landscape Verner Panton, 1970.

“Verner Panton’s interest in new materials and his experience in the realm of textiles formed the ideal foundation for his pioneering designs of Visiona 0 (1968) and Visiona 2 (1970). He created dreamlike spaces and space-like dreams in unusual shapes and colors that stretched across the entire interior of the boat. Visiona 2 was entirely focused on the question of living in the world of tomorrow. It broke the traditional understanding of space with its clear ascription of functions, instead creating surroundings that were dedicated to well being, communication, and relaxation. For this, Panton designed numerous design objects, including furniture, textiles, lighting, wall and ceiling coverings that formed in highly imaginative arrangements a series of very different spaces. As an integrative component, he developed both a lighting concept and atmospheric sounds for the individual spaces, like the song of a nightingale, the cry of an owl, bee humming, cat howls, or waves. In the cave, floors, walls, ceilings and recesses are seemingly moulded from one piece and infused with opaque blue and red tones. The cave’s lighting was integral to the design and supported with various sounds and scents in the different rooms. The Phantasy Landscape (also called living cave) on the main deck of the Loreley– generally remembered as the most impressive space of Visiona 2– can be considered the climax of Panton’s creative vision. This room discarded all traditional notions of architecture: the floors, walls, ceilings, and furniture seemed to be created from a single cast. The windowless space lacked any connection to the outside world and presented itself as an organic landscape, characterised by dynamic curved shapes that seemed as though they were cut out of the material itself. The elements in various shades of blue and red were like a multiplication of his famous Living Towers placed after one another: the blue shades on the outside, the red shades increasingly becoming brighter on the inside, so that the psychedelic arrangement appeared to glow from within. While the designs of Panton’s contemporaries often evoked associations with outer space, Panton’s livable sculpture with its warm colors and soft textiles sought to bring the interior life of the human being to an outer form.” -Exhibition at Vitra Design Museum from 7th February to June 1st, 2014. Review by DIVISARE

Source: PANTON DESIGN, BASEL. SPIRAL LIGHTS (1969, PRODUCED BY LÜBNER) PHANTASY LANDSCAPE VISIONA 2, IMM COLOGNE FURNITURE FAIR, 1970. COURTESY OF VITRA DESIGN MUSEUM

Source: PANTON DESIGN, BASEL. PHANTASY LANDSCAPE, VISIONA 2, IMM KÖLN MÖBELMESSE/COLOGNE FURNITURE FAIR, 1970. COURTESY OF VITRA DESIGN MUSEUM

home environments

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Source: Gaines, K., Bourne, A., Pearson, M., & Kleibrink, M. (2016). Designing for Autism Spectrum Disorders. New York: Routledge.

Domestic Strategies

Center for Accessible Housing, “Excel Home” (ca. early 1990s). Courtesy of Joy Weeber.

--------------------------------integrated Housing Restoration work on listed property belonging to the Stadtbau Regensburg GmbH

A glass elevator connects two buildings of an historic complex. Thirty-three disabled-friendly and barrier-free apartments were created in the grounds of a former brewery. The exemplary project won the Deutsche Städtebaupreis (German urban planning prize) in 2000.

150 Herwig, O. (2008). Universal design : Solutions for a barrier-free living. Walter de Gruyter GmbH. Created from uva on 2022-04-16 16:54:36.

Converting Asserts — Integrated Housing in Regensburg The future belongs to renovations or conversions, whether in the suburbs or the city, in relatively modern buildings, or in the historical center of town.

Because one thing is certain: new buildings will be erected less and less, as we will need to convert the existing structure of our cities to match shifts in demography. Yet this involves a preprogrammed conflict. The norms and standards that applied to areas that were previously unrelated will begin to overlap or even collide: for instance the protection of historical buildings and the need to convert them into barrier-free buildings. How this conflict of objectives might be solved can only be established on site. Regensburg, a city on the Danube, demonstrates both future developments and rejections in one concentrated area: World Cultural Heritage and growth center in one, a high-tech l ocation and an historical address. Important buildings are packed densely ogether in the old town; district after district is being renovated and modernized to meet today’s standards. Yet the standards are getting higher and always changing. And what about senior-friendly renovations? An epitome of conversion was created as early as 1995 on the outskirts of the historical center, on a quiet side street leading to the Danube. A former brewery was converted into thirty-three handicapped-accessible and barrier-free apartments of various sizes, ranging from one and a half room apart-ments to four room apartments, plus com-munity and social facilities. 65 It was possible to implement a flexible concept, which in larger apartments included either a children’s bedroom or a therapy room, because the architects and building owners were one and the same. Klaus Nick-elkoppe of Stadtbau Regensburg GmbH assumed the task of construct-ing a completely barrier-free development in the heart of the city at the lowest possible cost. Protecting historical buildings can in fact be converted into barrier-free structures — given the right basic conditions. There is a green courtyard between the buildings. The heart ofthe complex in the middle of the densely built old city is an oasis forr esidents, who meet on the footbridges between the two buildings halves. There are communal balconies here with benches and plants that create a meeting area that has an almost southern European feeling. This complex created normality in a residential building for everyone, the old and the young, for people without or without disabilities. A residential building that is open to the changesin our society and that includes its residents in the network of the city,with Arnulfplatz directly outside their front door. Herwig, O. (2008). Universal design : Solutions for a barrier-free living. Walter de Gruyter

Source: New York Times, photo courtesy of the Site of Reversible Destiny — Yoro Park

Bioscleave House: Reversable Destiny

Home for aging in place by Arakawa+Gins East Hampton, Long Island, New York, 2007 Reputations Arakawa and Gins. Architectural Review (1479), 52 - 55. Lambert, T. Arakawa and Gins. Architectural Review (1479), 52 - 55. In 2010, artists-turned-architects Shūsaku Arakawa and Madeline Gins founded the Reversible Destiny Foundation at their loft and studio on Houston Street in New York, a network for collaborations primarily intended to further their project pursuing immortality through speculative architecture and theoretical inquiries. Created under their provocative mandate ‘we have decided not to die’, these visionary sites of ‘reversible destiny’, implemented in the 1990s and early 2000s, aimed to increase mental and bodily awareness. Their buildings were designed to train the occupant to ‘not die’ through built features including uneven and undulating floors, unusual shifts in scale, and vibrant colour combinations, intended to make the occupant confront their body and senses. Arakawa and Gins’ modus was to create environments that demand attention, challenging the senses through constant visual and physical stimulation, compelling us to re-evaluate our world and ourselves. In problematising our bodily states, they suggest, we cannot subsist in stasis or succumb to death. As Gins said, ‘We don’t have to be passive. We can reverse the usual downhill course of things’. Forgoing traditional notions of comfort and convenience, their work intended to confront the physical body with corporeal and mental challenges in an attempt to multiply the ways the body interacts with

Images courtesy of Brown Harris Stevens

architecture. In their attempt to radically reshape the conditions of perception, they devised theirown set of terms to describe their goals,including ‘architectural body’, articulated in their 2002 manifesto-book of the same name. In it, they describe the reciprocity between body and architecture, and how, through architecture, meaning is created and defined through a process of self-invention. Later speculative projects were envisioned on an urban scale, including the developmentof apartment complexes, public housing and plans for entire cities, which live on today as schematic studies, models and digital renderings. Arakawa and Gins brought to these projects similar elements from their past works, including labyrinthine terrains, colourful and volumetric architectures (cubes, spheres, pyramids) and a continued experimentation with programme and space. Of the 2003 unrealised Isle of Reversible Destiny, Fukuoka, Gins wrote: ‘A very natural-appearing engineered terrain,an extremely re-articulated terrain makes itpossible for the body and the city to operate conjointly – as much kinaesthetically, proprioceptively, and tactilely as visually.’ Though these projects were never realised, their questioning of what constitutes a body, through an approach to creating designs for the reconstruction of experience, brings their work into proximity with fields such as artificial life research.

Source: OMA, Hans Willerman

Maison Bordeaux Home designed by OMA 1998

Text description provided by the architects. With the ability to make even the simplest and straightforward programs spatially dynamic and in a constant state of redefinition, Rem Koolhaas and his firm OMA have redefined the term that “a house is a machine for living” in their design of Maison Bordeaux. Completed in 1998, Maison Bordeaux sits on a small cape-like hill overlooking the city of Bordeaux. The house was designed for a couple and their family, but before Koolhaas and OMA were commissioned for the project in 1994 the husband of the family was in a life threatening car accident that left him paralyzed from the waist down. Two years after his accident, the couple approached Koolhaas to design them a new home outside of Bordeaux. Despite having been paralyzed, the man did not want a straightforward house rather he wanted a complex design, stating: “Contrary to what you would expect. I want a complex house because the house will define my world.” Koolhaas proposed a rather simple volume that was spatially complex and innovative in terms of the interior organization and conditions. Koolhaas proposed a house that was the compilation of three houses stacked on top of one another; each with their own unique characteristics and spatial conditioning. The house appears as three separate entities that fluctuate between opaque and transparent. The lower level sits as a heavy mass that is carved into the hill. The interior is cavernous and labyrinthian, in a sense, where all of the intimate activities of the family take place. The middle volume is the most transparent as well as the most occupied space in the house. It is the space for the living area that is situated partially indoors and outside offering extensive views over Bordeaux and allowing for a multitude of activities with its open plan. The top volume is similar to the lower level in that it is opaque and conceals the bedrooms of the children and the couple. Unlike the lower level, the volume is penetrated with port hole windows that create views for the residents from their beds. With each floor being inherently different it is perplexing as to how a handicapped man was able to live in such a spatially complex house. Even though there is no duplicated, or repeated, organizational system, all three volumes are tied together by a central elevator that moves between each floor. However, it is not simply just an elevator for vertical circulation between floors, but it is masked by the husbands office that provides access to the entire house moving from the kitchen, the lower level, all the way to the bedroom on the highest floor, which was driven by a large hydraulic piston that raised and lowered the room whenever necessary.

Community Living Facility Offers apartments in which the resident has a private bedroom and bathroom with a community kitchen and living area. Residents who live in the CLF receive 24/7 staff support. The CLF is a transitional setting where individuals build skills that increase their capabilities in areas of personal grooming and hygiene, cooking, budgeting, community integration and vocational development. All of these activities prepare individuals for independent living.

Community Integrated Living Arrangements Community Integrated Living Arrangements (CILA) provide individuals with the opportunity to live in residential communities supported by Little City staff 24/7. The residents learn to live as independently as possible in a home environment. Staff assists the residents in cooking, cleaning and participating in community activities. Clinical (mental health and behavioral intervention), recreational (community, campus, and home-based) and medical services are provided to improve quality of life. Presently, Little City owns and operates 15 homes in the northwest suburbs.

Supported Living Arrangments

The Supported Living Arrangements (SLA) facility supports people with mild to moderate challenges. These arrangements offer apartments at Little City where adults live by themselves or with a roommate. Individuals in this program are mostly independent and require less help and supervision. We help people with budget skills, grocery shopping or exploring work options. The ultimate goal for people who live in the SLA is to learn the skills that will enable them to live as independently as possible. Source: LittleCity.org

Little City

home environments

Housing, community, education, and services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Founded in 1959 in Chicago, IL

11.10 Little City Foundation in Chicago, Illinois

• curved walls on the interior services. As mentioned above, group living can take on a variety of forms including a campus-like setting or an integration into • reduced length of corridors existing neighborhoods. Often young adults will spend time • creation of circulation spaces with seating in respite homes to help them adjust to communal living. The • no air-conditioning extract or intake grills within reach of children “Little City is atovital, vibrant community offering a comprehensive scopeofofa services tolocated individuals with • landscaping incorporate sensory features following is an example respite home in the United intellectual and developmental disabilities. The founding principles along with a therapeutic Kingdom. • a canopy at front entrance to provide shelter community approach, continue to guide our and services for children and adults of all ages, space with separate space for coats andprograms boots • a large entrance enabling Little City to create hope, change lives and challenge the limits placed on individuals with • kitchens and communal rooms designed based on interviews disabilities.Our nonprofit includes a 56-acre campus in Palatine with a choice of housing, programming NORSACA Respite • materials selection for environments for children with challenging and educational options as well as a foster care placement office in Chicago. We recently added behavior based on interviews. Nottingham Regional Society for Adults and Children withthe Autism Duffey Family Children’s Village of state-of-the-art group homes for children and doubled our square (NORSACA) is a facility located in Langley Mill, Nottingham, footage and capacity of its ChildBridge Center for Education.” United Kingdom, and is designed by GA Architects. The structure -Little Cityoptions organization housing for Adults (Figure 11.11) is designed for six adults with autism and serves as a “home away from home.” The goal of the facility is to help the Adults with autism often live in a variety of places. Depending visitors develop socialization skills and participate in a number of engaging activities. The facility features some key design on their challenges and abilities, an adult with autism may live on their own, with their parents, or in group living with support elements, including: 145

Colored tactile pavers, like those used on Chicago’s ‘L’ platforms, tell individuals with visual impairments where to walk and how to walk. Source: Photo by Anthony Ciancio, c/o Unsplash.

Urban Design Strategies

Interior of the Ed Roberts Campus, Berkeley, California (2016). Courtesy of Anthony Tusler.

Source: Clare, Eli. Exile and Pride: Disability, Queerness, and Liberation. Duke University Press, 1999.

“The ‘15-Minute City’ Isn’t Made for Disabled Bodies” By prioritizing speed and efficiency over accessibility, the popular urban planning model neglects the mobility needs of those who can’t afford to live in dense neighborhoods. Anna Zivarts, Director of Disability Mobility Initiative, City Lab. April 22, 2021 The “15-minute city” — the idea that anyone should be able to walk or bike to most essential services within 15 minutes of their home — is all the rage in urban planning discussions these days. But let’s dig a little deeper: Who is included in “anyone?” In addition to the racialized and colonial assumptions at play, the 15-minute city model also erases disabled bodies and movement. How much time does it currently take you to get to the grocery store? How much time should it take? Society values time differently, depending on relative privilege. If you’re a commuter who drives to work, spending an extra five or 10 minutes stuck in traffic is cause for transportation departments to spend billions on road widening. But if you rely on paratransit, your pickup window can slide one or more hours on either end, and that’s par for the course. We all move at different speeds and with different ease through space. It’s a privilege to be able to walk quickly or hop on a bike or a shared scooter. What may be an easy jaunt to an able-bodied 20-something single dude can feel very different if you have a mobility disability, or if you’re blind, or if you have a kid or a grocery cart. Focusing on this 15-minute window of “easy time” puts us into the mindset of prioritizing efficiency, which fits conveniently into a framework that values speed over access. It’s the trap that’s gotten us to raise speed limits and refuse to install traffic signals to ease pedestrian crossings. Yes, we should care about land use and where things we need are located in relation to where we live. But in wealthy and expensive cities like Seattle, where I live, it’s irresponsible to have this conversation within the boundaries of the city, because living here is in itself an unaffordable privilege to many. Seattle is a transit and walking paradise compared to the surrounding exurbs and rural areas that are absorbing everyone who can no longer afford a million-dollar mortgage. And even the “affordable” cities in my state are too expensive if you’re a student or are living on Social Security disability benefits.

Source: The Paleisbruhg, Inclusive Urban Walkway, Benthem Crouwel Architects, Jannes Linder

It’s easy for privileged folks to support this vision of urbanism without making any sacrifices. At the Disability Mobility Initiative, a program I direct at Disability Rights Washington, we spent the last six months interviewing people who can’t and don’t drive to understand our unmet mobility needs. In interview after interview, people shared how often they have had to make difficult decisions between living closer to transit and services, and living in places they could more easily afford. Disabled people with economic privilege like myself choose to live in areas with good sidewalks, bus and light rail service. But many people I spoke with could only afford to live in exurbs that lacked sidewalks and regular fixed-route transit service. Some found themselves priced out into rural areas no longer served by paratransit; they rely on family and friends or charity rides to the doctor. When I hear “15-minute city,” I cringe, because what comes to mind are high-cost neighborhoods like Seattle’s Capitol Hill, or Park Slope in Brooklyn. These are places where those wealthy enough to afford to live there can stroll to their favorite bar or pastry shop, walk their dog in the park, and then drive their “green” electric vehicle to the mountains every weekend to go hiking. In surveying people across Washington who can’t drive, two clear priorities emerged. First, reliable fixed-route transit service that covers the entire state, not just dense urban communities. As the cost of housing has skyrocketed, many people who can’t drive or afford vehicles are priced out of living in transit-rich areas, and others can’t leave their support networks in the rural communities where they were raised. One survey respondent, Cody Shane Fairweather, reported that he has a difficult time finding a job because the bus only makes one round trip a day through Chewelah, the town in rural Washington where he lives. If the bus ran more frequently, he’d have better employment choices. The second priority is to build safe and accessible pedestrian infrastructure that allows connections to transit. Able-bodied folks might be able to dash across a highway or edge along a muddy shoulder, but to many disabled people, the lack of sidewalk or curb ramps to get to a transit stop, or the absence of an accessible pedestrian signal makes that transit stop inaccessible. In the Seattle suburb of Federal Way, there’s no sidewalk between Lilly Tuaau’s house and the nearest bus stop. She would much prefer the freedom of the fixedroute bus, but instead she has to reserve paratransit rides. It’s encouraging that the Biden administration’s American Jobs Plan not only includes funding aimed at boosting affordable housing and caregiving services, but also includes major investments in public transportation, street modernization to improve safety and accessibility, and pedestrian infrastructure. These investments should be applied broadly, so that access to sidewalks and reliable transit won’t translate to unaffordable housing. Living next to a paved street doesn’t equate to unaffordability — living next to a paved street with safe crossings, sidewalks and transit service should be the same. We need to stop limiting who can afford this access through how little we choose to fund non-car mobility needs. 86

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Raheja has developed a design for a concrete prefabricated bridge element to span the ditches (Figure 8–1a). He proposes that a shallow landscape ramp be used to provide access to the communal pump (Figure 8–1b). The sides of the ramp are walls that can be used to sit and socialize while waiting one’s turn. The ramp and bridges not only provide accessibility but also allow the use of wheeled devices to transport water. Using wheels reduces the effort needed and allows larger containers to be used, reducing the number of trips to the pump. A communal hygiene facility that is also accessible would not only provide access for residents with disabilities but also reduce the danger of drowning by washing in rivers, improve sanitation for the whole village, and reduce the spread of communicable diseases (Figure 8–1c). All these designs can be constructed with methods already used in the villages and built by residents themselves.

(a)

(b)

(c) Figure 8–1: Universal design in a rural Indian village. These examples show (a) a prefabricated bridge for drainage ditches; (b) ramped access to a water pump with a sitting wall; (c) an accessible community toilet and bathing facility. Source: Copyright 2008 Gaurav Raheja, “Enabling Environments for the Mobility Impaired in the Rural Areas,” Unpublished PhD dissertation, Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee.

Steinfeld, E., Maisel, J., & Levine, D. (2012). Universal design : Creating inclusive environments. John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated. Created from uva on 2022-04-16 23:06:56.

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(a)

(b) Figure 8–3: Historic building accessibility solutions. The two proposals shown here contrast (a) an original proposal with (b) the authors’ proposal for making an aesthetically pleasing front entry that does not detract from the historic architecture.

Parking Accessibility codes specify minimum requirements for accessible parking, including: • A speciﬁed number of reserved parking spaces for people with disabilities, based on total spaces available • Access aisles so that people who use wheeled mobility devices have room to transfer in and out of their cars

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FIGURE: Gallaudet multi-user facility, drawing by JSA/MIXdesign, 2017. Credit line: JSA/MIXdesign.

FIGURE 12.8

Gallaudet multi-user facility, drawing by JSA/MIXdesign, 2017.

“Racist, sexist and ableist thinking exemplified in movements like eugenics had spatial End-User Engagement thru the Lens of Public Health implications, restricting who was included and Soon after completing the Gallaudet project in 2017, we unveiled the Stalled! multi-user prototype at a series of public lectures and symposiaat at universities excluded from American public space a range the United States, the UK and Europe. Each event concluded with Q&A of across scales” sessions where audience members offered valuable feedback that made us aware Credit line: JSA/MIXdesign.

that our prototype inadvertently ignored many end users’ needs. A person in a wheelchair in Salt Lake City let us know that he faced overlapping but some-

Stalled! Inclusive Design through a Cross-Disciplinary Lens Joel Sanders, in Appropiated Interiors Design history proved liberating. Stalled!’s exploration of Western bathroom per-mutations convinced us that we need not be limited by convention. Now we were ready to turn our attention back to the immediate problem at hand: coming up with viable prototypes for all-gender restrooms that, unlike the legal battles being waged across the United States, did not accept the conventional configura-tion of paired sex-segregated bathrooms as a given. Design history encouraged us to seek alternatives to the most common and code-compliant approach to all-gender bathrooms—the “single-user” solution. It supplements multi-user men’s and women’s rooms with a single-occupancy, ADA-compliant room equipped with sink and toilet and a sign using words or icons designating it as gender neutral. A single-user bathroom provides more visual and acoustic privacy than stalls, making it the preferred choice for many (including trans people). An ideal solu-tion from a user’s perspective would be for building owners to build enough of them to meet occupancy fixture counts (i.e. the number of toilets and uri-nals required by code). This is, however, rarely feasible because of the additional expense and area required to build single rooms rather than stalls, viable only in situations requiring few fixtures (like a small restaurant). Ideally, single-user bathrooms are grouped next to men’s and women’s rooms; sometimes they stand alone, leaving it up to the user to make the effort to find them. By virtue of being an exception to the sex-segregated norm, the single-user arrangement has serious drawbacks, negatively impacting trans and nonbinary folk but also the general public. Not only does it reinforce the suspect notion of gender identity as an effect of biology, but it exemplifies the prevailing “separate-but-equal” approach to accessibility that caters to people with “special” needs through separate accommodations—entries, ramps and, in this case, isolated rooms—that stigmatize people who deviate from the norm by isolating them. These include trans and gender-nonconforming people as well as people with disabilities who are prevented from mixing with “normal” people in public space. Stalled! advocates an alternative model that abolishes the binary. We are in favor of getting rid of the typical sex-segregated facilities characterized by Amer-ican-style stalls whose revealing gaps compromise visual privacy. We recommend a multi-user solution that treats the restroom as a single open space with floor-to-ceiling partitions and communal areas for washing and grooming. Two early examples of this non-code-compliant solution, both located in New York City, were implemented at The Modern, Danny Meyer’s restaurant which opened in 2005 on the ground floor of the Museum of Modern Art, and Congregation Beit Simchat Torah, a synagogue for the world’s largest LBGTQ congregation designed by Architecture Research Office (ARO), who built the restrooms by obtaining a variance from the NYC Department of Buildings in 2016. In 2017, we collaborated with Gallaudet University in Washington, DC, a school for the deaf that has been meeting the educational needs of “noncon-forming” bodies since its founding by Abraham Lincoln in 1864, to develop a prototype (Figure 12.7) for retrofitting typical sex-segregated bathrooms into a multi-user facility. 90

Dolores Hayden: What Would a Non-Sexist City Be like?

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Lamar Garden: A Case Study Garden Design at a Residential Group Home for Severely Autistic Adults designing realistic environments

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Lamar Garden. A Case Study Garden Design at a Residential Group Home for Severely Autistic Adults. The garden design incorporates strategic site planning principles, such as spatial organization for intuitive wayfinding, and physical transitions between spaces and activities

• Provide a safe, barrier-free garden to accommodate restricted motor-skill function • Encourage and accommodate safe outdoor use at night • Provide a low-maintenance and low-water-use garden • Accommodate the needs of live-in caretakers • Create an amenable setting for visiting family and friends • Provide a place for group events for inter-socialization of residents with other autistic and typical adults

also is designed with a variety of microclimates in mind to suit the variations of thermal sensitivities of the individuals. Strategic placement of lighting that can be independently controlled has also been integrated into the design. In this design (Figure 14.6), resident privacy was accommodated in the shaded seating areas that seat both small groups and individuals. The layout affords individuals an opportunity to choose the level of privacy they desire and at the same time transparency for the caregivers to monitor the residents’ well-being. The architect also organized the space to include garden rooms (Figure 14.7) treated with materials, built structures, and equipment that clearly define their purpose. The rooms accommodate both active and passive experiences and serve as social centers for group gatherings. The defined pathways enhance mobility and provide for cognitive clarity to encourage independent wayfinding.

Key features implemented by the landscape architect in this garden (Figure 14.5) include accommodating activities that resonate with people with autisms’ desire to move their bodies in active ways and rest in positions that are comforting. Equipment, finish materials, and plantings have been positioned to offer individual choice and keep the residents safe. Residents can bounce, swing, sway, pace, and sit or lie on the ground as they choose. The area

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connections to the outdoors

14.6 (top) Lamar Garden. A Case Study Garden Design at a Residential Group Home for Severely Autistic Adults. Spatial Zoning to promote engagement and respond to the behavioral needs of people with ASD 14.7 (bottom) Lamar Garden. A Case Study Garden Design at a Residential Group Home for Severely Autistic Adults. Purposeful Spaces and Clear Wayfinding to accommodate the needs of people with ASD

Source: Gaines, K., Bourne, A., Pearson, M., & Kleibrink, M. (2016). Designing for Autism Spectrum Disorders. New York: Routledge. 189

designing realistic environments

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connections to the outdoors

14.8 Lamar Garden. A Case Study Garden

Design atSpectrum a Residential Group Home for Source: Gaines, K., Bourne, A., Pearson, M., & Kleibrink, M. (2016). Designing for Autism Disorders. Severely Autistic Adults New York: Routledge. 191

designing realistic environments

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14.9 Lamar Garden. A Case Study Garden

Source: Gaines, K., Bourne, A., Pearson, M., & Kleibrink, M. (2016). Designing for Autism Disorders. Design atSpectrum a Residential Group Home for New York: Routledge. Severely Autistic Adults 193

designing realistic environments

Source: Gaines, K., Bourne, A., Pearson, M., & Kleibrink, M. (2016). Designing for Autism Spectrum Disorders. New York: Routledge. 194

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Photo courtesy of NBBJ, 2022

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“NBBJ is Designing a Nature-Immersed Net Zero School in California for Neurodiverse Students” A New campus will foster an inclusive and engaging learning experience for students and teachers, responding to the critical condition of U.S students, where 2.3 million were diagnosed with learning differences between 2019 - 2020. Written by Dima Stouhi, courtesy of Archdaily April 07, 2022 The existing education system caters to neurotypical students only, disregarding neurodiversity, which can affect the amount of knowledge absorbed by those with different needs. The new campus will feature a unique net zero carbon design integrated into nature, further promoting the creation of zero energy education facilities, which have more than doubled in the U.S. since 2014. It will also include an indoor-outdoor, community-focused approach by replacing the existing 1950’s modular buildings with new dynamic spaces. Nature will be at the center of the project. The school will extend the “learning outside” approach by integrating daylight-filled classrooms that are oriented along a pinwheel formation and are directly connected to the outdoors. The courtyard and surrounding landscape feature interactive gathering spaces, a sensory garden, and a sculpture play area. In terms of material selection, the architects chose to employ calming natural materials, such as pre-fabricated mass timber and stone, to create a bright and engaging environment. The school’s structural elements are left exposed to showcase how the building was put together. The project will also feature sustainable elements such as rooftop gardens that provide access to nature, a central sycamore tree with a rainwater collection basin, solar panels, the use of mass timber elements, and deep roof overhangs that shade openings while creating a soft natural light to enhance learning. Construction is set to begin in June 2022.

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Enabling Village - an inclusive space that integrates education, work, training, retail and lifestyle, connecting people with disabilities and the society. Source: WOHA, Edward Hendricks, 2016

The wheelchair- and stroller- friendly ramps in the Flower Dome and Cloud Forest were some of the features which earned Gardens by the Bay their BCA Universal Design Mark Platinum rating in 2014. Source: Centre for Livable Cities, 2015

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No More Barriers Promoting Universal Design in Singapore Written by Dr. John Keung, courtesy of Centre for Livable Cities, Issue 6, 2015 Retroﬁtting and revamping access to all public buildings in a whole country is a massive task. Dr John Keung, CEO of Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority (BCA), describes the agency’s efforts to make buildings friendly for people of all ages and abilities. The Challenge Along with Singapore’s rapid urbanisation from the 1950s, a dense, high-rise built environment was created. At that time, the majority of the population was young and able. The need to provide barrier-free accessibility was not a critical concern, compared to maximising land resources for the economic and social needs of a growing population. 1990 was a milestone year for Singapore’s accessibility efforts. Although the population was still fairly young, a Code on Barrier-Free Accessibility in Buildings was introduced to help improve accessibility standards, especially for wheelchair users. It had been estimated that the number of senior citizens, many of who would face deteriorating physical abilities, would increase threefold. Thus, the goal of cultivating an inclusive built environment that supported “ageing-in-place” was conceived, to help individuals adapt to ageing in their homes – surroundings familiar to them. This would also allow families to care for older members. The concept of universal design, or “design for all”, was incorporated into BCA’s mission, to address the needs of people of all ages and abilities. With this goal, a key challenge was upgrading the large existing stock of buildings built before the 1990 Accessibility Code came into force. There was also a need to go beyond providing barrier-free accessibility within buildings and ensure that the surroundings of buildings are similarly barrier-free.

The Solution In 2006, BCA started a big push for universal design with the Accessibility Master Plan. Holistic and collaborative in nature, the plan allows BCA to work with other agencies to tackle the past, present and future challenges of creating a user-friendly built environment in Singapore. To address older buildings which were not barrier-free, BCA implemented an accessibility upgrading programme from 2006 to 2011, targeting buildings and areas regularly visited by the public. Since 2007, BCA has been advising government agencies on the upgrading of public-sector buildings with a base set of features for accessibility, which covers accessibility of approach to buildings and within the ﬁrst storey, including a toilet on that level. BCA has also played a role in facilitating and monitoring the upgrading progress. To incentivise owners of private-sector buildings to upgrade their premises to be barrier-free, BCA introduced the Accessibility Fund in 2007, which supports up to 80% of the total cost of refurbishing buildings to include basic accessibility features. In particular, BCA worked with building owners to improve accessibility along Orchard Road, a popular shopping district where most of the buildings were built before mandatory requirements were set in 1990. The Accessibility Code has undergone several revisions and updates to meet the needs of the time. The last review of the Code was conducted between 2011 and 2013, based on collaboration among the people, private and public sectors. Numerous public consultations, focus group discussions and user trials with stakeholders were held, to ensure the Code was comprehensive and could beneﬁt more Singaporeans.

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The Interlace was awarded a Platinum rating for the BCA Universal Design Mark in 2014 for its attention to universal design, such as furniture which can be adjusted to accommodate wheelchair users. Source: OMA/Ole Scheeren

A wealth of community-generating activities Source: OMA/Ole Scheeren

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No More Barriers (Cont.) For example, the 2013 Code review highlighted the need for more facilities that could cater to people with diverse needs. Child-friendly sanitary facilities and family car park lots have thus become required in buildings such as sports complexes and large shopping malls. Other facilities that have also become mandatory include Braille and tactile information for public toilet signs, and hearing enhancement systems in venues such as function rooms and auditoriums. The Code was also reﬁned to include wider corridors for easy access for wheelchairs and prams. At the same time, BCA continues to encourage developers, building owners, designers and other industry stakeholders to apply universal design in new developments and those undergoing upgrading. To encourage stakeholders to do more than just comply with the Code, BCA promotes universal design through courses, roving exhibitions and seminars. In particular, the BCA Universal Design Awards recognises development projects that show extensive efforts in applying universal design concepts with user-friendly features. A “sensory garden” available for public viewing at the BCA Academy also serves as a model to demonstrate the To widen outreach efforts,

About 90% of buildings along the Orchard Road shopping belt are now universally accessible – a marked improvement from 41% in 2006. Since the introduction of the BCA Universal Design Mark, a voluntary certiﬁcation scheme, BCA has received more than 70 applications and recognised 57 building owners for their efforts in incorporating universal design into their developments. Many developers now specify, as part of their design briefs, their desire to achieve Platinum rating for the BCA Universal Design Mark, the highest standard. In 2013, the BCA Universal Design Mark was recognised as an innovative practice at the international Zero Project Conference at the United Nations Ofﬁce in Vienna, Austria. Universal design is certainly no longer an unfamiliar term.

BCA has also begun to rate the user-friendliness of buildings. This information is available in the Friendly Buildings Portal, where users can check the level of accessibility of a building. A mobile application is also being developed for this purpose. universal design concept. The Outcome Today, people with mobility aids or on wheelchairs are no longer conﬁned to their homes. They can now be seen moving around neighbourhood markets, food centres, shopping malls and activity centres with ease. Close to 100% of public-sector buildings regularly frequented by the public now have basic accessibility.

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Venice Biennale , Elements of Architecture. Image: Nico Saieh 2014

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Ramps are sexy.

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