A drop in the bucket, but a very important big one for us.
— Maura Morhan, Parent
Welcome home!
New apartments offer community and independence to adults with developmental disabilities
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30 April 2026 – DENNIS, MA – Nonprofit FORWARD’s ceremonial ribbon cutting and tour highlighted the almost-complete phase 2 of FORWARD at the Rock.
The units combine affordable 1-br apartments with supportive services designed to enable independent living for adults with developmental disabilities.
Who will live in the apartments?
Maura Morhan’s 27-year old son will be one of the building’s inaugural tenants. He on the autism spectrum.
Morhan became a single parent about 18 months ago when her husband died. She realized that if anything happened to her, her son would be in a crisis mode needing a place to live. The state Department of Developmental Services (DDS) felt he would be a match for this model of housing and placed him on the list.
Although he has a full and active life, he will likely never be able to live completely on his own. Through the new housing, he now has a path forward to independence in his own apartment, but within a supportive place.
What does the housing support?
“These eight people have some type of services, about 8 hour a week … any type of support they would need to stay on track,” she said of the cohort that will soon be moving in.
“It allows these young adults to live as independently as possible but with dignity.”
What is the building’s status?
The new building lies just off Hokum Rock Road in Dennis. It represents phase 2 of the full project, bringing its new eight units to join eight previously-opened apartments in an adjacent low-slung building.
Current Cape Cod residents will fill all of the units. The demand far outstrips these apartments, but proponents say it’s a start. And a start that could be replicated elsewhere on the Cape … and beyond.
Morhan said that the new units represent just “a drop in the bucket, but a very important big one for us.”
Could this model be replicated?
“I think this model could be a model of all over the state, the country, and everything,” said Morhan.
“As a parent I am just so grateful,” she added. “I still worry if he is he really ready but I know he’s going to have the support and I’m so grateful.”
