Damar Village on the southwest side of Indianapolis is celebrating a milestone. On Wednesday, Oct. 9, the supportive living community, designed for adults with autism, developmental and intellectual disabilities completed its final phase. Damar Services welcomed members of the community, staff and tenants for an afternoon of celebration. "I can remember where we as an organization could never have done this because we didn't have the money to do it," said Jim Dalton, President and CEO of Damar Services. The first phase of Damar Village was completed in 2021. Twelve four-bedroom units have a shared living space, a fully equipped kitchen with appliances, a living room/dining room area, a guest bathroom and two shared bathrooms. One comes with a tub, the other a walk-in shower with accommodations for those with special needs. The property now boasts a total of 120 housing units. The newer units offer two-bedrooms. "We have a really integrated, really special place here we are really proud of," said Dalton. A place Hannah Steele has lived at for more than a year. "My mom is happy I finally learned how to cook by myself. I had help in cooking and learning how to do the laundry by myself, because she had always done my laundry and I finally learned how to do it all by myself," said Steele. Hannah is proud of her accomplishments and so are her parents. "They wanted to give me independence, you know, give me a new found freedom. Get to learn things that they can't teach me," said Steele. An opportunity for those facing some of life's greatest challenges. But another challenge remains: affordable housing, especially for those living with disabilities. "Our wait list is significant here while we're serving a lot, there's many more that need to be served," said Dalton. So others like Hannah can have a great living experience. "The new building is so cool. It has everything you can think of. A nail salon, a hair salon, game room," said Steele. "Anything you dream of is in there." For more information on Damar Services, visit www.damar.org. https://www.wthr.com/article/news/local/damar-village-in-indianapolis-celebrates-completion-services-autism-developmental-intellectual-disabilities-supportive-living-homes-housing-affordable/531-9cd93613-a34f-414b-9527-2f6931f0e9d6