Advocates has applied to receive $75,000 of public CDBG funds to make this heartwarming project a reality.
“Advocates is proposing to demolish a 200-year-old building and build a new, four-bedroom, 2,400 sq ft fully accessible group home at 693 Concord Street in Framingham, on property owned by Advocates. This project will increase the availability of permanent, accessible, supportive housing for individuals in Advocates developmental services program.”
The building proposed to be demolished exists in the historic registry as the Framingham Deaf Community Center, a building in the Second Empire architectural style. It is listed as historically significant because it is “a vernacular Second Empire house – simply a graft of a mansard roof , bracketed eaves, bays and a front porch onto a traditional 5-bay, central hallway house form. This might even be an earlier house remodeled. The classical porch columns are probably replacements. A good vernacular example of a style not common in Framingham.”
“This project will serve four aging women with developmental disabilities. They are in their 60s and 70s and have complex medical conditions including Down Syndrome, Autism, diabetes, seizure disorder, and hearing and vision impairments.”
The total project cost is expected to total $946,000.
Advocates argues that Framingham will benefit from more permanent accessible housing
for individuals with developmental disabilities. While heartwarming, Advocates wants to take a historic 8-bed and 4-bath group-home, and replace it with a 4 bedroom group home. Where is the logic in that?
