Massachusetts Special Olympics planning major building project for Marlborough

MARLBOROUGH

The Massachusetts Special Olympics hopes to start building a new $10 million, 25,000-square-foot headquarters in Marlborough next year, according to Bob Johnson, the organization's president and CEO.

Although the organization has other offices around the state, the new state-of-the-art office and training center would replace the existing state headquarters in Danvers, said Johnson.

"We want to be more central," he said of the move. "We're an organization that's growing pretty dramatically."

Statewide, the organization serves 11,000 people with intellectual disabilities now and projects the number to double over the next five years, he said. The new facility, which will have a full-size gym but is not for competitions, will be off Interstate 495, on Forest Street, said Johnson.

About one third of the $10 million needed has been raised and the plan is to break ground once fundraisers reach the halfway point of $5 million.

-- Lisa Kocian