Kehillah Housing offers affordable home for adults with developmental

Layton and Eugene Borkan hope their daughter lands a place in Kehillah Housing.

The residential complex for adults with developmental disabilities is expected to open next year at Cedar Sinai Park in Southwest Portland.

The Borkans' 36-year-old daughter Rachel, who has idiopathic mental retardation, lives in a basement apartment in their home with her 12-year-old Lhasa Apso, Schmatty. The couple, both 67, want Rachel settled somewhere safe when they're no longer around to watch over her.

"The kind of independence that (Kehillah Housing) could provide within a caring community would be the best place for her," Layton Borkan said.

Kehillah Housing will be the only facility in Multnomah County that has affordable housing and on-site programs for adults with developmental disabilities, said Peter Korchnak, online communications manager at Cedar Sinai Park.

First facility

A nonprofit organization based on Jewish values, Cedar Sinai Park offers residential and community-based care to seniors and adults with special needs. Kehillah Housing will be the organization's first residential facility specifically for adults with developmental disabilities.

However, the group's services also include Rose Schnitzer Tower in downtown Portland. Ten percent of Rose Schnitzer Tower's residents must be younger than 62 years and have a physical or mental disability, Korchnak said.

Cedar Sinai Park sstaged a groundbreaking ceremony on Sept. 28 for Kehillah Housing, which will be a two-story, green building. The $3.5 million project will employ 40 people in construction and operation.

The 14 residents of Kehillah Housing - Kehillah means "community" in Hebrew - will have access to life skills training classes such as meal planning and medication management as well as social activities, job training and other services. An on-site manager will be available when Kehillah Housing residents need help.

Cedar Sinai Park, which also features the Robison Jewish Health Center and Adult Day Services program, will provide one meal per day at Kehillah Housing.

"We're interested in creating a community, not an institution," said Cedar Sinai Park Chief Executive Officer David Fuks.

The application process for the 14 residents is not finalized, although two spots will be set aside for developmentally disabled people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

Eugene Borkan, who is on the Kehillah Housing board, said the application process will be fair, so his family has as much chance of getting an apartment as any other family with a child who falls within a target group.

"We're invested in the concept," he said. "We're happy for the Jewish community and the community at large, but there probably will be more people seeking housing than there will be available slots."

The housing is designed for single adults with developmental disabilities who earn about 16 percent of the median family income, Korchnak said.

"Most residents will rely on Supplemental Security Income (SSI) as their sole source of income (currently $8,386 per year in Multnomah County)," he said.

Residents do not need to be Jewish to apply.

A 1998 idea

The Jewish community has been involved in Kehillah Housing from the start, sparking the idea for the development in 1998. Members of a support group for parents with adult children with disabilities at Jewish Family & Child Service (JFCS) in Portland wanted their children taken care of after they passed away or were unable to look after them. The parent group also wanted their children to live independent lives.

"It's very important to families for their parents to see (their children) live up to their full potential," said Marian Fenimore, executive director of JFCS.

Fenimore said the agency, a nonprofit social service organization, approached Cedar Sinai Park 10 to12 years ago about partnering on a development that met the community's needs. The groups have collaborated in the planning of the project, and Cedar Sinai Park now is responsible for operations and Fenimore's group will offer some support services along with other organizations.

Jewish Federation of Greater Portland awarded the Jewish social service money to conduct a feasibility study in 2000 that indicated a dearth of housing for adults with developmental disabilities, Spiegel said.

"According to our research, up to 80 percent of adults with developmental disabilities in Oregon live with their parents for lack of other options," Korchnak said.

In 2006, Cedar Sinai Park changed its mission statement to include adults with special needs.

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Source: http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2012/10/kehillah_housing_offers_afford.html

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