Springbrook Set To Expand - Boosts Economy, Enhances Services For Children

By Denise Richardson

The Daily Star

A proposed school for autistic children will create 112 jobs, fuel the local economy and provide instruction and care for pupils sent to other states for services.

Springbrook's $20 million Coming Home expansion project has received final approval from the state, Sen. James Seward, R-Milford, and Patricia Kennedy, chief executive officer of Springbrook, said Tuesday. The construction and renovations are to begin in June and take about 20 months, officials said.

``The Coming Home expansion puts people first, by creating the capacity to bring children, forced out of state, back home _ this will mean a great deal to the children and their families alike,'' Seward said in a prepared statement. ``Springbrook is already Otsego County's fifth largest employer, and the Coming Home expansion will generate an additional $5 million annually.''

The state Education Department and Office of Children and Family Services will pay $14.7 million of the project, Springbrook officials said in a project summary. Springbrook is raising $5 million, officials said, and thanks to donors and a $2.5 million matching grant from Buffalo Sabres owner and Paychex founder B. Thomas Golisano, less than $500,000 remains to be gained in the fund-raising effort.

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