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PRESS RELEASE. From the Big Wave project September 2024.
Project to provide housing for 38 adults with IDD, and access to continuing education, social enrichment, and job training for hundreds of Bay Area adults with IDD.
HALF MOON BAY, CA (September 2024) – Big Wave Group announces the commencement of construction on a unique $37 million, 50,000-square foot two-story residence for adults with IDD. Situated on the seven-acre Big Wave campus in Princeton Harbor, this innovative project features a variety of individual apartments from studio to three-bedroom, a 10,000 sq. ft. outdoor courtyard, indoor common areas, and a commercial kitchen to be leased to tenant One Step Beyond, Inc. (OSBI).
On the Big Wave campus, OSBI will operate a Culinary Academy, Catering Program, and Day Program, providing life skills, employment opportunities, recreation, health & fitness, fine arts, and community integration for adults with IDD throughout the Bay Area. An additional 3,000 sq. ft. of commercial space will be available for lease from companies that may offer employment opportunities to adults with IDD.
“Our mission is to empower these individuals to participate fully in our communities,” said Madison Blanton, CEO of OSBI. “We provide continuing education for life because when these adults leave the school system, they leave behind their social community, educational services, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and work training opportunities. Their world halts.”
55,000+ people in the Bay Area have IDD, and over half are adults. 80% live at home with aging family caregivers. They are isolated and often lonely, creating a housing crisis when family members pass. 85% are unemployed and have limited job skills and employment options.
“Every person in our County deserves a place to call home,” said Supervisor Ray Mueller of San Mateo County District 3. “This project will provide vital housing, a safe community within our greater community, and a place to thrive. Thank you to everyone who came together to support this project – it’s been many years and a lot of work to make it happen, and I’m thankful to all who have made their voices heard.”
The residence will be adjacent to the five-acre Big Wave Farm, which is already a community hub for hundreds of Bay Area adults with IDD. They visit each month through their County Day Programs to gain nutritional guidance, farm skills, and enjoy social opportunities.
“Our adult children want community and a place to belong – but they can’t create it themselves,” said Big Wave Board President Leslie Nordin. “And the community can’t be rooted in parents because we won’t always be here.” The Nordin family recently relocated from Boston, Massachusetts to prepare for their blind and autistic 20-year-old son to live at Big Wave. “Since he was 14, we started searching across the country for more than just a place to live — for his own community where he can thrive. The choices were few and far between until we finally found Big Wave.”
Parents, family members, community donations, and grants funded the project, supported by a construction loan from LISC, a national nonprofit organization specializing in community development. The housing crisis is acute in the Bay Area, and the population most affected is this vulnerable group who have very little voice. The team behind Big Wave intends to use this community as a proof-of-concept model for other intentional communities nationwide.
This project will also support local job creation, including dozens of above minimum wage jobs, such as administrative, caregivers, and other facility and campus support personnel.
Architectural Dimensions is the project architect, the general contractor is Swenson Builders, and the project manager is DRB Associates. Necessary entitlements, architectural and engineering plans, and construction permits have been approved, and water and utilities infrastructure has been installed.
The project will start September 2024 and is on target to be completed in early 2026, marking the beginning of a new chapter for the IDD community in the Bay Area.
Thanks to:
Photography courtesy of Shanti DuPrez
Videography courtesy of Zoe Wiederhold
Fact Sheet
Mission: Provide housing, a sense of community, and access to opportunities for Bay Area adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).
Vision: Become a “community hub” and place to belong for adults with special needs throughout the Bay Area.
The Need: Approximately 55,000 Bay Area individuals have IDD such as autism, Down syndrome, developmental delay, brain injury, and cerebral palsy. Over half are 18+ and isolated and lonely once they leave the school system. 80% live at home with family caregivers, creating a crisis as family members age and pass. Bay Area affordable housing serves just 8% of adults with IDD. 85% are unemployed with limited job skills and job options.
The Project: A 12-acre campus which includes:
- 50,000 sq. ft. residence with 36 private studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments for 38 residents and aides. Seven of the units are reserved for need-based families.
- 10,000 sq. ft. outdoor courtyard for recreation, socialization, and community engagement, as well as inside communal areas.
- Commercial kitchen operated by tenant One Step Beyond, Inc. (OSBI), offering a Culinary and Catering Academy for Bay Area adults with IDD, teaching cooking skills for independent living or to gain employment in the culinary industry.
- Day Program operated by OSBI, providing continuing education, community inclusion, music, arts, physical fitness, recreation and job training.
- Additional 3,000 sq. ft. of commercial space on the ground floor for businesses that may provide potential employment opportunities for residents.
- Five-acre Farm on adjacent property for education and skills development, which currently serves hundreds of Bay Area adults each month from multiple County Day Programs, who help produce products sold to the local community.
- Supported living model where residents choose their daily activities from jobs to volunteering, day programs or recreation, with access to education, skills development, job opportunities and community engagement.
- Job Creation of dozens of local, above minimum wage jobs including administrative, caregivers, and other facility and campus support personnel.
Project Cost: Total cost to build: $37M
Funding: Community funded, including sale of residential memberships via a community housing cooperative; grants; private donations; up to $12.5 construction funding by Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC).
Progress: Secured all construction and utility permits. Installed underground infrastructure including water main, onsite water utilities, sewer main and on-site sewer and conduit for underground utilities; biological protection fence installed; compacted and certified pad completed; Phase I of wetlands restoration completed; temporary electricity installed, construction financing secured; general contractor secured.
Construction of the primary residence is targeted to begin September 2024 and take approximately 18 months to complete.
The Big Wave Residence
This campus on Airport Boulevard in Princeton Harbor, Half Moon Bay, California, offers critically needed lifelong housing and a community hub for Bay Area adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). It includes individual apartments, communal spaces, an outdoor courtyard for socialization and community engagement, and a working Farm. Big Wave has worked with the California Coastal Commission and San Mateo County to secure the permits needed to meet regulatory requirements, the needs of the target population, and the community at large.
About Big Wave
The Big Wave Group is a Bay Area 501©3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide housing, access to opportunities, and a sense of community for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Located on the San Francisco Peninsula in Half Moon Bay, CA, the campus will include a 50,000 sq. ft. residence, a 10,000 sq. ft. outdoor courtyard for recreation and socialization, a working Farm, and a commercial kitchen operated by One Step Beyond, Inc. (OSBI). OSBI will provide a Culinary and Catering Program and Day Program for adults with IDD throughout the Bay Area. Project location: 380 Airport Road in Half Moon Bay, CA. Mailing: PO Box 1901, El Granada, CA 94018. www.bigwaveproject.org Facebook, Instagram @bigwaveproject
Author: Coastside Buzz
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