City officials and local advocates met today to break ground at the site of a housing development being built to accommodate adults with special needs.
Denise Resnik and her 25-year-old son, who has autism, were the first to shovel dirt on the site of her non-profit’s 81,000-square-foot property in the heart of downtown Phoenix.
Resnik co-founded a local autism research center, and now leads First Place AZ, which will build assisted living apartments, offer independent-living courses for residents and include a training center for professional providers.
“The looming question for parents like me of a child with autism or special needs is who‘s going to care for them when I’m no longer able to do so, and we want people to have more hope,” she said.
John Kemp, 22, just moved back from Los Angeles and helped break ground with a dozen other special-needs adults. He already knows he wants to live in one of the 56 apartments.
"I mean I have autism, and I'd like to let the world know that I can make a change in the world," Kemp said.
He says living in an inclusive place will give him a more independent life and a way to give back to his community, too.
EDITOR'S NOTE: A previous version of this story incorrectly spelled Denise Resnik's last name.
