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www.HartfordBusiness.com • June 1, 2020 • Hartford Business Journal 3 Up Front New Horizons Inc. eyes 22-unit apartment complex in Unionville By Sean Teehan steehan@hartfordbusiness.com W hen Farmington's New Horizons Village opened in the 1980s, Connecti- cut's housing infrastructure for phys- ically disabled adults was so bereft of options, many lived in hospital wards in New Haven or Hartford. In that context, New Horizons Inc. was a god-send when it opened its 26-acre campus in the Unionville sec- tion of Farmington that included 68 housing units built to be accessible for 101 disabled tenants, about two- thirds of whom shared a dwelling. "To just share an apartment with one other individual was vision- ary," New Horizons Inc. CEO Carol Fitzgerald said. "When you fast- forward 30-plus years, … it's very difficult to match adults who want to live independently to live with someone they do not know." Fitzgerald said she wants to invert the current single-to-double ratio so two-thirds of New Horizon clients have private units. That's why the approximately $20-million-a-year nonprofit with 225 employees — including about 50 at the New Horizons Village complex on Bliss Memorial Road — plans to build a new 22-unit residential complex on its campus, she said. However, before that happens New Horizons faces the challenge of fundraising for the estimated $5-million project during a pandem- ic and severe economic downturn. Farmington's planning and zoning board this month will vote on wheth- er to extend the approval it gave the project when it was first proposed two years ago. New Horizons had planned to start construction earlier, but unsuccessful efforts to obtain state funding delayed its progress. The pandemic could cause further delay, since so many state dollars are unexpectedly going toward necessary COVID-related expenses, Fitzgerald said. "[COVID-19] has had to be dealt with, and has taken up resources that could normally be used on this kind of project," Fitzgerald said. "The whole thing has affected all of our lives." A need for privacy New Horizons Village operates much like any apartment building, as opposed to a nursing home, Fitzger- ald said. Units have features like wheelchair-accessible sinks, showers and light switches. Amenities like transportation are offered, but ten- ants pay their own bills, do their own shopping and live independent lives. But almost everyone who moves in has to start off in a shared unit be- cause the wait list for a single apart- ment is between 15 and 20 years. That delay is unacceptable today, said Fitzgerald, who also stressed that the pandemic has demonstrat- Continued on page 4 >> TOWN PROFILE: FARMINGTON The company that builds and installs the critical systems in virtually every type of facility is the same company you can rely on to maintain them. For over 50 years, our clients have trusted us to deliver end-to-end facilities solutions, so they can focus on their core business. Experts in: Facilities Services, Preventive Maintenance Programs, Onsite Operations & Maintenance NEMSI SERVICE SOLUTIONS INCREASE PRODUCTIVITY. REDUCE COSTS. 860.871.1111 Toll Free: 800.741.6367 nemsi.com MECHANICAL | ELECTRICAL | PLUMBING | SHEET METAL | BUILDING AUTOMATION | FACILITIES SERVICES License #'s: E1-0125666 S1-302974 P1-203519 F1-10498 SM1-192 MC-1134 NEMSI HBJ_QtrPg Ads_200117.indd 3 1/17/20 1:31 PM A rendering of New Horizons Village in Farmington with a planned new 22-unit residential apartment complex. RENDERING | CONTRIBUTED Carol Fitzgerald, CEO, New Horizons Inc.