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Epcon Homes & Communities | 3 E pcon Communities Franchising, Inc. (ECFI) is one of the leading, nationwide developers and fran- chise operators of active-adult homes and communities in the U.S. By combining a copyrighted building and development sys- temwith professional franchise support, Ep- con Communities has become one of the most unique and exciting franchise con- cepts on the market. Epcon was formed in 1986 by Ed Ba- come and Phil Fankhauser. These gentlemen conceived a revolutionary “pinwheel” design that addressed the housing needs of the ma- ture homebuyer. The first Epcon communi- ty was in Columbus, Ohio, but others in the market quickly recognized the universal ap- peal of the homes, thus leading to a licensed design that was built by another company in Youngstown, Ohio in 1989. While most other home builders were focusing on a younger, family-oriented de- mographic, Bacome and Fankhauser recog- nized that there was a segment of the aging population whose housing needs were be- ing overlooked. As this awareness became