Where do you start? Want to build a living environment? A case study: a new adult residential program for young adults with disabilities

I want to build a living environment. Where do I start? This is a question many parents of children on the spectrum have. This session will explore the process of developing and/or building a living environment for our autistic children transitioning into the adult world. Identifying and setting your residential program’s goals will be discussed, along with the factors that will impact the development of those goals inclusive of defining the population of the program, the required staffing needs and whether the program will be private pay or use public funding.

Additionally, information on zoning and building issues will be discussed to educate the attendees on possible obstacles that may hinder or impact their planned living environment or residential program. Some of the obstacles may include restrictions for proximity of residential homes from each other or number of homes on one property.

After the discussion on the process of developing goals and understanding zoning and building issues, the attendees will look at the process of creating and building a living environment through a case study of a new adult residential program for young adults with disabilities being developed in Phoenix, Arizona.

Cathy Purple Cherry

Cathy Purple Cherry, AIA, LEED AP is a leader in the design of environments for children and adults with special needs. As a Special Needs Architect, Ms. Cherry, Principal, Purposeful Architectureâ„¢ and Purple Cherry Architects, creates spaces that foster thoughtful living and learning environments and inspire creativity, individuality and independence. Ms. Cherry is currently working on projects being designed and constructed nationally to better serve our special needs population. Ms. Cherry lectures nationally and is on the national board for the Autism Society.