(Photo: WFAa) 
 
 Debra Caudy was frustrated a few years ago, frustrated with the lack of options for her son's future. 
 
 
 
 "I just didn't understand why it wasn't here, in one of the largest cities in our country," Caudy said. 
 
 
 
 The mother of four lives in Dallas. She retired from a long and successful career as an oncologist to help raise and care for her son Jon when he was diagnosed with autism at two-years-old. 
 
 
 
 Her son is now 19-years-old, and Caudy says housing for Jon and all adults with autism is lacking across DFW. She and her husband Clay Heighten, who is also a doctor, decided to create a community unlike any other across North Texas. 
 
 
 
 "The response has been overwhelming. It just shows the great need for this," Caudy said. 
 
 
 
 In 2015 the Dallas couple purchased 29 acres of land in Cross Roads, Texas in Denton County. This year they plan on breaking ground in a "gated community of sorts" where adults with autism will live, go to work and continue to grow. The plan includes 15 homes, job training, recreation and a staff of 150 to 200 trained professionals. 
 
 
 
 "These men and women want jobs. They want to pay taxes. It gives them a feeling of fulfillment like any of us want," Caudy said. 
 
 
 
 Caudy says the city of Cross Roads has been an unbelievable partner. The town of around 1,200 people has welcomed its new neighbors with open arms. 
 
 
 
 "It really is a symbiotic relationship. We're going to see our new neighbors in our stores, at our events and in our community," said Becky Ross, city planner for Cross Roads. 
 
 
 
 Ross worked with Caudy and Heighten to acquire the proper zoning for the 29 acres of land. The couples says they've raised more than $1 million and they're working with investors to reach the $12 million mark. 
 
 
 
 "This is a social enterprise, the return isn't huge, but people are doing this because they're helping and contributing to a community," Caudy said. 
 
 
 
 For Caudy, the most important aspect of 29 acres is its focus on continued growth for adults with autism. She says it's a "heart warming venture" for many, but it also has tangible benefits for the area, things like jobs, research opportunities for nearby UNT and more homeowners as many parents will likely move to be near their adult children. 
 
 
 
 "This is just the beginning," Caudy said. 
 
 
 
 Ultimately Caudy hopes this idea is copied and duplicated across DFW and the world. While she's excited to break ground on the first homes this year, she's even more excited to see where this idea and the men and women it was made for go from here. 
 
 
 
 If you want to donate or want more information, you can visit their website here. You can also contact them at 817-832-9346. 
 
 © 2018 WFAA-TV ||||| We know that Dallas Ft. Worth is an autism friendly city. We are currently raising start-up costs to launch our transition academy in July of this year. Our goal is $540,000 and we are ¾ of the way there. Please help us cross the finish line. 
 
 
 
 ||||| Not surprisingly, parents are often the first to come up with creative solutions to manage. Evans is aware of other families who have children with autism in North Texas who have collectively purchased homes together. They share the space, like a co-op, working together to support one another. 
 
 
 
 There are many recent efforts to assist people with autism in finding work, according to Bernick, who has written about trends in autism employment likely to continue in 2017. They include targeted hiring by large employers, the launch of autism-focused small businesses and internet-based creative programs. 
 
 "But we need a wider range of options," he said, noting that he too became involved in the autism community when his son was diagnosed in 1991. "All of us parents of have the concern, " he said. 
 
 Jon Heighten turned 19 last month, but his parents got the idea to start 29 Acres when he was in his early teens. That's when they began to look for housing and employment options diverse enough to meet his needs if they were no longer alive to take care of him. 
 
 "We couldn't find anything. So we just decided to do it ourselves," said Caudy, who is 59. "We want to do it not just for him, but for many of the others out there like him. The need is enormous." 
 
 Multi-media journalist Tommy Noel contributed to this report.
– For years, the parents of a boy on the high-needs end of the autism spectrum have been brainstorming what to do when he enters adulthood. When he was a pre-teen, they hit on the idea of a housing complex designed specifically for adults with autism, and now that he's 19, they are about to break ground on their dream. Debra Caudy, a retired medical oncologist, and her husband Clay Heighten, a retired emergency doctor and founder of a real estate management company, invested $745,000 in 2015 to purchase 29 acres of rolling meadows and woods in Cross Roads, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, and have created the nonprofit 29 Acres as they seek to reach their fundraising goal of $12 million, reports WFAA. "We couldn't find anything, so we just decided to do it ourselves," Caudy tells the Dallas Morning News. With so many young adults like their son, she adds, "The need is enormous." Some estimates put half a million students with autism entering adulthood in the next decade. With 200 staff, the complex will include 15 homes, a community center, a "transitional" academy that teaches life and work skills to those who might be able to live independently, a bus stop, and easy access to ride-sharing for residents needing to shop, get to work, etc. The first residents are expected to move in next year. Caudy hopes her idea will prove successful in Texas and throughout the world. "This is just the beginning," she says. (This form of autism strikes fast and can result in "sharp reversals.")