Homeless

As Ohio's summer season begins, the visibility of those who are unhoused increases. Many people who lack access to heat management conditions in residencies, restaurants or offices opt to use outdoor public spaces.

The Community Shelter Board's annual point-in-time count was done in January. The annual census found 2,587 people experiencing homelessness on the day of the count.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development capped funds for programs that house formerly homeless people at 30% of their previous allocation.

Last month, the non-profit Star House purchased St. Ladislas Church in south Columbus to turn it into a drop-in center for homeless youth. St. Ladislas has been vacant since 2023.

During this heat wave, Capital Crossroads Special Improvement District ambassadors have been working to support unhoused people dealing with the hot weather.

Unhoused people were living temporarily in the Loyalty Inn on Columbus' Far East Side after the city dismantled outdoor encampments late last year.

Ohio organizations from Cincinnati to Toledo hope to build tiny home villages for homeless and housing insecure veterans.

Homeless people in at least six Ohio cities can be fined or arrested for sleeping in public places, even if there’s nowhere else to go.

Now in its 15th year, the Finding Voice poetry workshop offers men a platform for self-expression. Their stories were recently published in “These Words Are Not My Home: Writing From The Unhoused.”

A pastor in northwest Ohio faced criminal charges after housing people who are homeless in his church. The city appears to have dropped them for now, but the issue of homelessness in rural areas remains.