Athens group outlines pilot to place four Conestoga micro‑shelters at 510 West Union

The Athens Planning Commission on Sept. 18 heard an informational presentation about a county‑led pilot to place four Conestoga micro‑shelters at 510 West Union St.

Ginger Schmullenberg, executive director of Athens Mental Health Inc., which runs The Gathering Place, said the huts are intended as a nonpermanent, supervised interim shelter for people experiencing homelessness while the community develops a full city shelter. "These are our community members. They belong to the community," Schmullenberg said, describing the huts as lockable, insulated 60‑square‑foot units that cost roughly $2,500 each and can be built quickly.

The project, Schmullenberg said, is supported by Sisters Health Foundation, the Athens Foundation, CoCreate Coalition and several local partners, and will pair nightly sheltering with wraparound services including case management, transportation to daytime programming and coordination with Hopewell Health Centers. She said sanitation will be provided—"we will have a potty, and that will be serviced every week"—and staff will check the site each morning and evening. The group is planning a mid‑November start for a one‑year prototype.

Why it matters: the proposal aims to reduce barriers to services for people who are unhoused by offering a safer, temporary place to sleep and secure storage for belongings. Supporters said the huts can help connect residents to counseling, housing vouchers and other benefits; critics said the pilot raises public‑safety and neighborhood concerns and asked for clearer guardrails and community outreach.

Commission staff flagged a key legal limit: because the site is county property within city limits, the city’s zoning code does not apply in the same way. "If the county has property ... they don't have to follow all of our zoning regulations," a planning staffer said, citing precedent and advising that the planning commission's role here is informational; the county will ultimately authorize the use and the city can be notified but not block the project.

Public commenters raised questions about scale, oversight and location. Russell Chamberlain, a nearby property owner, requested a clear one‑year limit, explicit expansion controls, and a publicly available budget for operations and maintenance. Lori Deal, who said she owns a Columbus Road business, urged caution placing the pilot near ballfields and a bike path used by children. Eric Lee asked whether the pilot’s goal is to reduce homelessness or merely to make it more comfortable; Schmullenberg said the pilot is intended to connect people to services and is an interim step while a permanent shelter is pursued.

The Gathering Place described metrics it will use to evaluate the prototype: intake orientation responses, engagement with case managers, attendance at appointments, progress on housing‑related tasks (such as obtaining IDs or submitting voucher applications) and community complaints or police calls. Schmullenberg said initial residents will be individuals already engaged with services and that the program includes rules to prevent unauthorized camping and sharing of huts.

Next steps: the planning commission took no vote; staff said the commission would issue a zoning certificate as a communication if the paperwork is complete but emphasized it lacks authority to impose restrictions on county‑owned land used for a public purpose. Members of the public were directed to bring substantive objections or requests for changes to the Athens County commissioners, who own the property and are supporting the pilot. The commission’s next meeting is Oct. 2.

The project timeline and operational details given at the meeting: four huts initially, prototype for one year, start mid‑November, funding pledged by Sisters Health Foundation, and ongoing coordination with OhioMeansJobs and local service providers.