LIVINGSTON, NJ—Hollister Construction Services has been named construction manager for LifeTown, a 47,000-square-foot, $14-million facility in Livingston, NJ, that will provide social, therapeutic, recreational and educational programs to youths with special needs. The facility is being built by The Friendship Circle, a Jewish organization for children with special needs supported by the Chabad Lubavitch, a movement within Orthodox Judaism.
The project, slated for completion in winter 2015, will transform a former warehouse into an inclusive center. LifeTown will offer a variety of educational and therapeutic experiences, from a sand room for tactile therapy to mock retail stores for instruction on self-reliance within society. The center will also enable all children and teens to learn social and life skills in a safe and controlled environment.
One of just a few such facilities in the nation, LifeTown can be compared to a backlot movie studio, specially designed for first-hand, educational experiences. At the center of the building is Life Village, an extremely detailed mockup of a town square where individuals with special needs can practice vital life skills. Life Village will house functioning storefronts including a bank, florist, food and book stores, a salon, pet shop, health-care facility, café and movie theater. It will even include street crossings, a traffic light and sidewalks.
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