A 25-Year Dream Realized: Big Wave Center Redefines Adult Disability Care

HALF MOON BAY, CA – July 01, 2026 – After more than 25 years, a question that haunts countless parents of children with disabilities—"What will happen when I'm no longer here?"—has received a powerful, tangible answer on the California coast. Today, the Big Wave Center officially opens its doors, a $37 million, 50,000-square-foot campus designed not just as a facility, but as a future for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).

What began as the personal mission of one father, Jeff Peck, for his daughter, Elizabeth, has culminated in an innovative model for housing, employment, and community. The center addresses a critical service gap and pioneers a new framework for how private enterprise, nonprofit collaboration, and community financing can solve deeply entrenched societal challenges. Among the first to move in is Elizabeth Peck herself, turning her father's lifelong promise into her new home.

The Post-22 Cliff

The opening of the Big Wave Center isn't just a local success story; it’s a strategic intervention in a statewide crisis. For decades, the support system for individuals with IDD has been described as a cliff. Until age 22, the public school system provides a structured environment with educational and social services. But after that, the support plummets, leaving adults and their families to navigate a fragmented and underfunded landscape.

Data from the California Department of Developmental Services paints a stark picture: over 90,000 adults with special needs in the state live with aging parents. In the Bay Area alone, where the cost of living exacerbates the problem, an estimated 55,000 adults with IDD face this reality. More than 80% live at home, often leading to profound isolation for the individual and mounting anxiety for their caregivers. Government-funded group homes, the most common alternative, are plagued by years-long waitlists and often require individuals to move far from their communities, severing vital social ties.

The Big Wave Center was conceived to bridge this chasm. It provides an integrated environment where housing is intertwined with lifelong learning, vocational training, wellness programs, and social engagement, creating a continuum of support that empowers adults to lead fulfilling, independent lives.

A Father's Life's Work

The driving force behind this monumental project is Jeff Peck, a contractor by trade whose most personal project began with a universal parental fear. "More than 25 years ago, this journey began with a question every parent of a child with disabilities eventually asks: 'What will happen when I'm no longer here?'" said Peck, Founder of Big Wave Group. "I wanted Elizabeth to have a place where she could continue to grow, build friendships, contribute to her community, and truly belong. Today, that dream has become reality—not just for Elizabeth, but for countless other adults with disabilities and the families who love them."

Peck founded the nonprofit Big Wave Group in 1999, leveraging his professional skills to tackle what he called his "life's work." His dedication extended beyond construction plans; he also established and coached the Half Moon Bay Special Olympics basketball team and Challenger Baseball, weaving a network of community and support long before breaking ground. His family, along with another, donated the land for the 12-acre campus, a foundational gift that seeded the entire endeavor.

A Blueprint for Collaborative Innovation

Bringing a $37 million vision to life without conventional bank financing required a masterclass in creative and collaborative strategy. The project's financial architecture is a blueprint for other mission-driven developments. A key piece of the puzzle was a $12.5 million construction financing package from the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), a national community development organization that recognized the project's unique housing model and its inability to fit traditional lending boxes.

Further funding came from an innovative community housing cooperative model, where some families purchased residential memberships for between $300,000 and $600,000. These residents will also pay monthly fees to cover utilities, maintenance, and activities, with scholarship units available to ensure broader access. This structure not only provided capital but also created a cohort of deeply invested stakeholders.

To ensure long-term financial sustainability—a core tenet of Peck's vision to outlast the founding parents—the campus includes commercial spaces that will generate revenue to keep operating costs low. A planned mission-driven restaurant and cafe, overseen by parents of a future resident, will provide both income and vocational opportunities for residents.

The project's operational model is as collaborative as its financing. Big Wave Group acts as the landlord and infrastructure provider, partnering with best-in-class nonprofits to deliver services. One Step Beyond, Inc., a leading organization in the field, operates an on-site Adult Day Program and a Culinary & Catering Academy within the center's commercial teaching kitchen, providing workforce training and life skills.

This intricate web of partnerships, from donors and public agencies to the construction team, created a powerful synergy. "Helping bring Big Wave from vision to reality has been one of the most meaningful experiences of my career," said John Hinton, the volunteer project executive and retired CFO whose daughter, Jane, will also call Big Wave home. "As the father of a future resident, every decision was personal. I've never experienced a project with such an extraordinary sense of teamwork."

More Than a Building, A Future

For the 40 adults who will live here, Big Wave is more than a safe place to live; it's a launchpad. The campus is designed around a "supported living model" that prioritizes independence and personal choice. Residents can design their own days, whether that involves attending classes, working in the community, or participating in on-campus activities.

The facilities include modern apartments, fitness and recreation spaces, a 10,000-square-foot community courtyard, and direct access to the adjacent Big Wave Farm. The farm, already serving over 1,800 adults with IDD annually, offers programs in agricultural education and nutrition, allowing residents to cultivate both plants and friendships.

The emotional resonance of this achievement is palpable among the families. One mother of a future resident described the center as "not only a building, it's a future." Another future resident, touring the nearly completed campus, expressed a sentiment shared by many after a long journey: "Every time I come here, I cry happy tears because it's taken so long for this to be built."

With its doors now open, the Big Wave Center is set to serve hundreds of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities each year, creating new pathways for independence, belonging, and purpose. It stands as a testament to the power of a single vision, amplified by a community, to build a more inclusive and supportive world.