RED BANK, N.J. — Work has begun on an apartment building in Red Bank specifically designed for adults with autism.
The project was approved by Red Bank in the fall of 2023 for a site on Shrewsbury Avenue that contained retail and an apartment building, which are now being demolished.
The new 34,000-square-foot building will have 32 one-bedroom units and one ground-floor studio apartment, which will be staffed around the clock.
Advertisement – Continue Reading Below
It’s expected to be completed in early 2027.
“We’re excited the shovels are in the ground,” said Karen Fluharty, who spearheaded the project after an exhaustive search for a place for her son Ryan to live when he aged out of services as a young adult with autism.
Fluharty founded Parents with a Plan, a nonprofit that’s comprised of parents, families, legal and housing professionals who want to develop solutions for young adults with disabilities.
It came up with Thrive Red Bank, a first-of-its-kind, neuro-inclusive housing project, which is a private/public partnership between Parents with a Plan and Rutgers Center for Adult Autism Services.
“Adults with autism arguably have the poorest quality of life than any other community in the U.S. and I think it’s time for someone to stand up and do something,” said Christopher J. Manente, executive director of the Rutgers Center for Adult Autism Services.
“Thrive is a real demonstration of that. Autistic and other neuro diverse people deserve to have beautiful, excellent places to live.”
Thrive will have low voltage lighting, gathering spaces that are sensory friendly, floor drains in the bathrooms to prevent flooding, faucets and ovens that shut off automatically if left on, among other well thought out elements to suit its residents.
“Beyond that it will be like any other one bedroom apartment in the area,” said John Klein, managing partner of Thrive Red Bank, who has decades of executive experience in real estate development. “I think that’s very important.”
Thrive will also have on-site support services. An Rutgers Center for Adult Autism Services employee will be there Monday through Friday as a resource for the 32 residents and their families, “To ensure they’re getting the support they need and meeting the life outcomes they hoped to achieve,” Manente said.
And there will be a round the clock support person who will live in a ground floor studio apartment.
Rent for the market value units will be about $5,000 per month, Fluharty said.
This isn’t just the first building of its kind in New Jersey. “There’s nothing else like this in the world,” Manente said, adding that others do bits and pieces but the extent of services and the public/private partnership is one-of-a-kind.
Demolition of an office building at the site was expected to begin this month while Thrive continues securing construction permits, Klein said.
Red Bank was chosen because of its walkability, job and volunteer opportunities for Thrive residents and its cultural and educational offerings.
“It’s very well-rounded with a variety of experiences,” Klein said.
There are at least 200,000 people in New Jersey who have intellectual or developmental disabilities, according to a market analysis study commissioned by Parents with a Plan. About 73% live with family and 38,000 of them live with a caregiver who is over the age of 60.
Thrive had nearly 50 applicants before construction began.
“The demand overwhelmed and really humbled me,” Fluharty said.
Twenty-seven of the 32 units at Thrive will be market-rate and five will be affordable units.
Applications for the affordable units will not be open until six months before construction is completed. Applications for the market-rate units are still being accepted.
All potential tenants will have to go through a clinical assessment with Rutgers Center for Adult Autism Services.
© 2025 Advance Local Media LLC
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC
