A new Boone County non-profit is promoting a community geared towards adults with developmental or intellectual disabilities to be built in Whitestown near the parkway. Submitted image
This is a wider look at the facility that organizers says will take $10 to $12 million to build with a community center. Submitted image
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A new Zionsville non-profit is developing a Whitestown community for adults with developmental or intellectual disabilities, which could be considered a model for the future.
ILADD (Independent Living for Adults with Developmental/Intellectual Disabilities) was formed in 2019 by several parents of adults with disabilities. The group is raising $10 million to build a pocket neighborhood called Crossbridge Point, hopefully in three to five years.
“We envision about 40 to 60 adults and two-thirds to three-quarters of adults will be with intellectual or developmental disabilities,” Tom Easterday, president and one of the founding members, said. “The remainder of the homes will be for individuals who do not have any type of intellectual or developmental disabilities and that’s so we have a neuro-diverse community. So we’ll be looking for adults that can serve as good neighbors as well as providing natural supports, maybe retired teachers, nurses, clergy.”
Easterday, and his wife Deb, have a son with Fragile X syndrome, which is a genetic condition causing intellectual disabilities. For 20 years, the couple coached Special Olympics and saw a need for an organization offering instruction for independent living skills to their son, Matt, and his peers.
“They might be living with mom and dad now, or maybe a brother or a sister, but they really didn’t have a plan for the future,” Easterday said. “They really wanted to live on their own, but there wasn’t any safe or affordable housing available to them.”
Many stakeholders served by ILADD want a community that promotes independent living because they were concerned about the future.
“They weren’t sure what was going to happen when mom and dad weren’t around or weren’t able to take care of them anymore,” Easterday said. “That question has just been out there and, quite frankly, causes a lot of stress for the individuals and their families.”
Crossbridge Point will offer one-, two- and three-bedroom residences at an affordable rate to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Then the group hopes to build a community center that will serve not only the residents, but the surrounding community.
While the goal is to provide affordable housing, enrichment and social options, Easterday said members of a “self-advocates” council have different views about living alone or with roommates.
A community will also give residents a chance to see their friends. Many individuals with IDD are shy and won’t initiate these social interactions adding to their isolation. Easterday said it is not just part of their social skill set.
“This will allow them – on a daily basis – to see their friends, have events organized for them if they want to attend them in the community center,” Easterday said. “They will have pre-arranged activities where they don’t have to do anything to arrange it, they just show up.”
The homes will have separate bathrooms for each resident and employ some of the latest smart home technology. The board hopes to offer enrichment programming to residents focused on independent living, not just for residents but for individuals who are content with their current living arrangement. A webinar is set for Feb. 10 on guardianships and supported decision-making. There is already a book club and Easterday said ILADD will start a hiking club soon.
While the project is planned to be in Whitestown, ILADD is still in negotiations for 12 to 15 acres of land, all within a couple of miles of the main business district along Whitestown Parkway. Easterday said that is intentional.
“Because many of our residents are or will be employed, we want to make sure they have those employment opportunities,” he said. “And that they can get easy transportation to and from their homes.”
The non-profit hopes to raise up to $12 million in a capital campaign which Easterday says will be a benefit to Whitestown. The high price tag would include the community center and make each unit affordable. While there may be some units for rent, the plan calls for the majority of residents to be owners.
The organization hopes to hire an executive director next year.
Easterday said the group is working hard to make Crossbridge Point replicable.
“If we are successful with this, maybe we’ll continue to build other locations in Central Indiana or across Indiana,” Easterday said. “Or we will share it with other groups that have started up in other areas.”
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