UBS Arena opens new sensory rooms for all ages
Three new sensory rooms have opened at UBS Arena for guests of all needs. Credit: UBS Arena/Dennis DaSilva
The UBS Arena in Elmont has opened three sensory rooms for guests of any age who have sensory processing sensitivities and might need a place to take a break during an event.
The rooms, one on each floor of the arena, were developed in conjunction with Northwell Health. They are painted powder blue, a color known to be calming, says Jennifer Simonetti, a director of nursing at Cohen Children’s Medical Center who worked with fellow nursing director Sharon Goodman to develop the spaces.
The rooms were created to allow people of all abilities and needs to attend any arena event, whether a concert or an Islanders game, and know there are accommodations for them, Simonetti says. “They shouldn’t have to come to one designated event that’s for people with autism,” she says.
Rooms have couches and beanbag chairs as well as equipment known to help people who are triggered to re-center themselves, the nurses say. “A trigger can be sound, it can be light, could be the amount of people, could be a smell,” Simonetti says.
For example, a Vecta Machine, which looks like a series of lava lamps, has tubes of bubbles in soothing colors that move vertically. Arena guests can control the lights and bubble speed and it helps them relax, Simonetti says. There are also gel floor tiles and an optical illusion infinity tunnel that hangs on the wall. In addition, each room has a hand-painted mural done by artist Taylor Deltz, either of a fall,, winter or beach scene.
“A lot of the equipment we selected are things we use that we’ve seen success with,” Goodman says referring to her work at Cohen Children’s Medical Center.
Rooms are designed to be used by one family at a time, will be open for all arena events, and will be free to enter. “We want every one of our guests to feel comfortable when they walk through our doors, no matter their needs,” says Mike Sciortino, UBS Arena general manager.
Beth Whitehouse writes about families, parenting and great things to do with the kids on Long Island. She’s been a Newsday editor and shared a 1997 Newsday staff Pulitzer Prize for coverage of the crash of TWA Flight 800.
