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Parents, providers ask Vermont committee for capital funding to build housing for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities
Summary
Parents and program leaders told the House Committee on General & Housing that Vermont lacks specialized, permanent housing for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), that three pilot projects need capital to proceed, and that the state’s reliance on shared living and aging parents is unsustainable.
Marla McQuiston, a parent and organizer with the Developmental Disabilities Housing Initiative, told the House Committee on General & Housing on Jan. 17 that three pilot projects funded for planning need construction funding so adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities can remain in their communities.
“The Champlain Housing Trust in Burlington is still needing $2.8 million,” McQuiston said, asking the committee to consider capital investment so the planned project can move from design to construction.
McQuiston said Vermont’s reliance on shared living (home-based community supports) and aging parents to provide housing is not keeping pace with demand. She cited a 2022 brief from the Developmental Disabilities Council that estimated a statewide need of 602 units for adults with IDD and said that figure is likely low.
The request followed a presentation from Hannah Schwartz, founder of Heartbeat Lifesharing, who described Riverflow Community, a nonprofit program that used Act 186 planning funds to renovate a house and open a staffed residential home on a 30-acre site in Monkton. Schwartz said Riverflow currently houses four residents, employs four on-site residential staff who live at the property, and has more than 60 applicants seeking services. She described renovation costs of roughly $537,000 for the first house and said Riverflow received a $240,000 award from VHIP and $50,000 from a program identified in testimony as "V Lite," as well as private fundraising.
Schwartz urged the committee to back bricks-and-mortar funding in addition to program dollars: “Program funding is helpful, but we need money to build the programs,” she said, adding that philanthropy alone cannot scale to meet demand.
Committee members asked about whether the pilot projects had sought state or federal capital sources and whether the Champlain Housing Trust application had been submitted to the Vermont Housing & Conservation Board and Burlington Community Development Block Grant programs. McQuiston said the projects had applied to multiple sources but did not know whether the administration planned to include the request in its budget; a committee member asked staff to follow up with Chris at Champlain Housing Trust for an update.
The presenters described multiple operational models. McQuiston cited a model used by Visions in New Hampshire that staffs homes in shifts (rather than a single live-in provider) to reduce turnover and improve staff job satisfaction. Schwartz described Riverflow’s “extended community household” model, emphasizing continuity, life-skill development and integration with local services and internships.
Both speakers emphasized workforce challenges: agencies surveyed their shared living providers and found a substantial share considering leaving in the next five years; McQuiston said that survey found about 25% of providers planned to leave in that timeframe. Presenters warned that if shared living providers and direct support staff continue to decline, more adults with high support needs will be left without suitable housing.
The testimony included specific asks: capital funding to move Act 186 planning grants into construction, continued regulatory relief to enable projects, and state investment to scale models that combine higher- and moderate-support residents in community settings. The presenters offered to meet with lawmakers and to provide additional documentation, including the Developmental Disabilities Council’s 2022 housing brief, which was cited in testimony.
Funding gaps, workforce shortages and aging parents were presented as immediate pressure points; speakers said those problems require brick-and-mortar investment now so projects can demonstrate operational efficiencies and train staff for scalable programs.
Schwartz and McQuiston closed by urging committee members to read the DD Council report and to consider budget priorities that would allow pilot projects to proceed to construction.
The committee did not take formal action during the hearing; members said they would use budget-review opportunities to consider the requests and follow up on Champlain Housing Trust’s funding status.
