Enhancing accessibility at Allied Solutions Center
11/6/2025 12AM
Upgrades include sensory-inclusive services, automatic doors, new parking options
CARMEL, Ind. – New amenities for people with sensory sensitivities are part of an ongoing initiative to make Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts a more welcoming environment for people with disabilities – both visible and hidden.
Alongside many facility improvements, the 1,500-seat Payne & Mencias Palladium is now certified Sensory Inclusive® by the nonprofit KultureCity® organization. An estimated 1 in 4 Americans has a sensory processing need or invisible disability, including people with autism, dementia, Parkinson's disease and PTSD, among others. For such people, common sounds, lights, crowds and smells can be overwhelming and even physically painful.
The Sensory Inclusive® certification requires annual staff and volunteer training and indicates the on-site availability of:
- Sensory bags, which include noise-canceling headphones, strobe-reducing sunglasses, fidget tools, and other helpful items, available at the West Salon coat check
- Weighted lap pads and message cards for nonverbal communication, also available at the West Salon coat check
- Signage identifying “Headphone Zones” where loud sounds might be encountered
- A designated quiet room off the East Lobby with beanbag chairs, a mobile sensory station and other features.
Visitors to the Payne & Mencias Palladium can ask any staff member or volunteer about these accommodations for people with sensory needs. A step-by-step visitor guide for Allied Solutions Center is available at kulturecity.org.
“Our mission is to engage and inspire the Indiana community, and that means everyone,” said Jeffrey C. McDermott, president and CEO of Allied Solutions Center. “These new amenities represent our broader goal to continue making our campus and our events more inclusive and welcoming for the local community and any potential visitor or employee.”
To inform the process, Allied Solutions Center hired a consultant with disabilities to attend events undercover on the three-venue campus and prepare an accessibility report with recommended improvements to facilities and staff procedures.
One result: The number of accessible parking spaces on the loop drive around Carter Green has been doubled to eight, including five new van-accessible parking spaces marked in bright blue paint near the Payne & Mencias Palladium’s west entrance. (With Carter Green currently closed to traffic for the Carmel Christkindlmarkt, temporary accessible spaces have been designated on southbound 3rd Avenue SW and eastbound City Center Drive.)
Other recent improvements at the Payne & Mencias Palladium include:
- Exterior entrances: relocation of automatic door buttons to be more reachable
- Restrooms: touchless automatic door openers; special door handles on accessible stalls
- Signage: added throughout the building for accessibility and general wayfinding
- Elevators: new high-contrast signage with enhanced Braille lettering.
Improvements scheduled in the coming months will include:
- Safety: Installing handrails for the stairstep aisles in the Tarkington theater
- Sound: Replacing the assistive-listening system at the Payne & Mencias Palladium with new Bluetooth-based technology that can stream higher-quality audio to audience members through their own hearing aids or earbuds, without need for special devices
- Website: Continuing an accessibility makeover with the addition of the UserWay widget to give viewers more control over the web experience.
More information is available at TheCenterPresents.org/Accessibility, (317) 843-3800 or Accessibility@TheCenterPresents.org.
About Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts
The mission of Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts, celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2026, is to engage and inspire the Indiana community through enriching arts experiences. The nonprofit organization’s campus in Carmel, Indiana, includes the 1,500-seat Payne & Mencias Palladium concert hall, the 500-seat Tarkington proscenium theater and the black-box Studio Theater. Allied Solutions Center presents and hosts hundreds of events each year, including the annual Center Presents performance season, featuring the best in classical music, jazz, pop, rock, country, comedy and other genres. Educational and experiential programming for all ages includes children’s concerts and camps, book clubs, lectures, and classes in music and stand-up comedy. Allied Solutions Center is home to the affiliated Great American Songbook Foundation and provides space and support services for six resident arts companies. More information is available at TheCenterPresents.org.
