HAY Center

Project Description

The HAY Center Campus will serve homeless youth and young adults who have aged out of the foster care system and are at or below 50% area median income (AMI). The campus will feature a 17,000-sq-ft wraparound services building with offices, meeting rooms, a computer lab, and life skills training rooms, as well as a 41,000 square foot residential building with 50 apartments, community space, a kitchen, a small gym, a business center, and private study rooms.

Initial funding sources for the campus included $20 million in Harris County CDBG-DR funds, $5 million in City of Houston CDBG-DR funds, and $5 million in philanthropic funding, in-kind donations, and Harris County general funds. With construction costs rising significantly from project inception to groundbreaking, $9 million in Harris County ARPA Local Fiscal Recovery Funds provide a key bridge allowing the project to continue in the face of inflation.

PRIMARY PARTNERSHIPS

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

The vision for the campus was inspired by direct input from our youth through visioning sessions with Gensler Architects and has the following key components:

  • HOME: Designed so all activities can take place in an environment that feels like HOME with community kitchens, small and large meeting places, comfortable furnishings and entrances that make all visitors feel welcome.
  • EMPOWERMENT: Signing a lease, being provided a key and having a place of their own is one of the most empowering experiences the HAY Center can provide our youth.
  • COMMUNITY: Designed to be part of an established community with access to public transportation, employment opportunities and green spaces that would promote a sense of belonging.
  • WELLNESS: Designed with wellness in mind, opportunities to improve or maintain physical, mental and other forms of wellness throughout the campus will be accessible to residents as well as HAY Center Youth not residing on campus. An important inclusion will be on sight wrap around services including case workers and mental health services.
  • SECURITY: The security of knowing they do not have to be dependent on someone else for a place to live and the security of knowing they are in control of their space allows youth to feel safe. Campus security features, based on input from our youth and professionals in the industry, have been incorporated into the campus design and plan.

TARGET IMPACT

The goal is to create 50 new units of Permanent Supportive Housing for 60 young adults aging out of foster care with supportive services on-site.

USE OF EVIDENCE & PROGRAM EVALUATIONS

Access to affordable and stable housing and wraparound services are essential to Transition Age Youth (TAY), helping participants successfully transition to independent living. A national study indicated that up to 36% of former foster youth in the United States will become homeless within the first two years of leaving care. As a result, there is a higher risk for negative outcomes for TAY, including low education attainment, unemployment, criminal justice system involvement, mental health issues, and transient living.

Each year, more than 250 youth in the Houston area will exit the foster care system. Often, these youth do not have the support of a responsible adult to assist their transition to adulthood. The HAY Center can help meet the needs of TAY through affordable housing units and wraparound services. This project supports the need to increase access to quality affordable housing and reduce homelessness in Harris County.

PHOTOS