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Community Shelter Board seeks gap funding, hotel‑based non‑congregate shelter and winter warming support amid rising unsheltered homelessness
Summary
The Community Shelter Board told city council the local homeless crisis response is seeing more seniors, youth and chronic unsheltered homelessness and asked for a multi‑part funding package to prevent shelter closures, support winter warming centers and acquire hotels for non‑congregate shelter.
Steve Skavencie of the Community Shelter Board (CSB) told the Health, Human Services & Equity committee that homelessness in Columbus and Franklin County is growing in severity and complexity and that the system needs additional, flexible funding to stabilize operations and expand non‑congregate options.
CSB’s request: Skavencie said CSB submitted a proposed request that includes $5,389,650 for comprehensive system needs (street outreach, prevention, emergency shelter, rapid re‑housing), $4,658,089 in gap funding to avoid shelter bed closures at the end of the fiscal year, and $1,200,000 to cover winter warming centers and hotel placements. He said CSB will present a full budget request to the full council and that the numbers are tied to a community needs assessment.
Trends and program innovations: CSB described increased senior homelessness, rising youth entries to shelter, increased chronic and unsheltered homelessness, and the highest‑ever recorded length of stay for families in shelter. To better engage people who do not enter traditional congregate shelters, CSB operates hotel‑based non‑congregate placements and winter warming centers; Skavencie said more than 300 people moved into hotel placements this winter who otherwise would have stayed outdoors and that currently all four warming centers are at capacity. He said hotels allow pets and couples to remain together and have proven effective for people reluctant to enter congregate settings.
Housing development and direct cash: CSB said it is pursuing hotel purchases to operate as non‑congregate transitional shelter and is seeking to develop deeply affordable housing; it also described a direct cash pilot that served 20 families with positive outcomes (18 remained housed nearly a year after the pilot) and noted CSB is now using cash assistance for roughly 80 families.
Council follow‑up: Council members thanked CSB for detailed data and asked for further budget detail during the upcoming council meeting. No formal votes were taken at the committee hearing.
