For individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and intellectual disabilities (ID), the world can be a sensory deluge. The significantly heightened or reduced sensitivity to stimuli that typically accompany these conditions can make everyday life a challenge. When it comes to design, creating spaces where neurodivergent communities can thrive requires a distinct architectural sensibility. In Montreal, the recently completed Centre Lise et Yvon Lamarre residence and day centre is purpose-built to foster a soothing and inclusive environment that supports personal autonomy and community integration.

Designed by local studio Lemay for non-profit housing provider Fondation Yvon Lamarre, the L-shaped, two-storey complex integrates a cluster of four maisonettes (each with four bedrooms) with communal spaces including a shared dining hall and a variety of sensory rooms to accommodate individual needs and serve day centre clients. Built to house up to 16 young adult residents, the infill project occupies a 500-square-metre site on the grounds of the Cœur-Immaculé-de-Marie church in southwest Montreal.

For the architects and their clients, the project is the culmination of a journey that began several years earlier. Faced with a lack of established precedents for neuro-inclusive design, Fondation Yvon Lamarre commissioned Lemay’s research arm FLDWRK to develop a design framework for ASD- and ID-friendly housing. The resulting 2021 study, Sensory Fragments, meaningfully shaped the design of Centre Lise et Yvon Lamarre.

As part of the Sensory Fragments study, FLDWRK identified a range of “transitional space” that can help buffer zones of high and low stimulus.

With an emphasis on serving individuals with a wide range of sensitivities, FLDWRK and Lemay’s research centred on spaces “which calm hyperactivity and anxiety with therapeutic design.” To that end, the team combined universal design principles with a particular emphasis on generous transitional zones that help ease the passage between areas of high and low stimulus.

Quiet, private spaces like bedrooms are strategically separated from louder communal settings and sensory rooms (including music and art studios), with transitional uses — ranging from living rooms and bathrooms to laundry facilities or even a small cinema — serving as a buffer.

By the same token, the design prioritizes spatial adjacencies between spaces with similar qualities of sensory stimulus, maintaining a degree of distance that correlates with function.

FLDWRK’s “Adjacency Matrix” was developed as part of Sensory Fragments. The matrix defines the level of compatibility of individual programs with each other. It is broken down into three types of adjacencies: desirable, neutral, or undesirable.

These specific strategies were paired with broader design principles; Throughout the building, whisper-quiet HVAC and mechanical systems foster a calm ambiance with reduced auditory stimulus, with acoustic paneling and ceiling baffles further softening the ambient noise.

A careful balance between soothing natural (and neutral) tones and vibrant, energetic spaces also defines the interiors. To support intuitive wayfinding, colour-blocked walls and furnishings help distinguish discrete zones, while access to natural light — and the connection to the surrounding community it provides — shapes the whole of the complex, including the corridors. Mechanical lighting is similarly key to sensory regulation, with individually dimmable luminaires allowing for custom programming throughout the day for each resident. Moving through the building, gently rounded corners aid fluid passage through the transitional zones, easing circulation and reducing ambient anxiety for both residents and day centre clients.

Completed in just 12 months — and opened in early 2025 — the $12.5 million project was funded by federal, provincial and municipal investment, including a $6.5 million contribution by the Government of Canada, as well as a range of private donors. According to Fondation Yvon Lamarre president Andrée Robert, the complex helps set an evolving precedent for inclusive housing. “With this new Centre, the Yvon Lamarre Foundation is working to transform the way we design housing for people with autism spectrum disorder living with significant sensory vulnerabilities and severe behavioural conditions,” says Robert.

Clad in simple grey brick, the building’s pared down exterior is designed to cohere with the limestone walls of the adjacent church, while the surrounding landscaping offers sheltered access to the outdoors. Moreover, the Centre Lise et Yvon Lamarre’s high-performance building envelope, low-emission finishes, and energy-efficient systems are designed to meet the Zero Carbon Building standard. The result is an understated building that fits into its urban context: It is radically inclusive precisely because it is so deeply ordinary.