Approach
Star House is the only drop-in center for homeless youth in Central Ohio. Serving more than 750 teens and young adults in 2014, Star House had long outgrown its single family three-story house it was operating out of near Ohio State University. Through a capital campaign the center was able to gather enough funding to purchase and renovate a commercial property more than eight times the size of the group’s original space.
With the larger new facility, Star House is helping to serve a larger population. Although no overnight accommodations are available, the house provides basic needs items and resources. This ADA compliant renovation of an old printing facility included: instructional education spaces, a recreation/resource room, including a computer training area with six computer work stations, staff office and conference areas, visitor and welcome/intake area, two open community areas, some built-in seating, a large industrial-sized kitchen and accompanying dining space, ADA accessible shower and laundry areas, partitioned storage area with overhead delivery door for food, hygiene, clothing items, as well as secured file storage space.
