Articles

Hope House: Transitional Housing and Recovery Support for Homeless Men

Faith And The City E-Letter
Volume 3, Issue 1
January 8, 2004

After extensive efforts by a range of people and organizations, construction of Hope House officially began with Mayor Shirley Franklin delivering remarks at the December groundbreaking ceremony near Atlanta City Hall.

Hope House will provide transitional housing for 70 homeless men participating in a structured program leading to self-sufficiency. It will offer essential supportive services and employ a holistic approach to address participants' needs.

The project is being developed by Progressive Redevelopment Inc. (PRI) in partnership with the Capitol Hill Neighborhood Development Corporation (CHNDC), an alliance of Central Presbyterian Church, the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, and Trinity United Methodist Church, all of which are located near City Hall. Saint Jude's Recovery Center will provide support services.


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Hope House is one of seven priority recommendations of the Mayor's Commission on Homelessness and one of 16 projects recommended in the Homeless Action Plan, a community-wide planning process to alleviate homelessness in metropolitan Atlanta. It is an integral part of the efforts by the city, Homeward Inc., and others to improve assistance to homeless persons. Hope House will reinforce the Resource Opportunity Center (the Rock), the intake and service center on Decatur Street, and other referral organizations by providing a safe place for homeless men while they participate in recovery programs and secure full-time jobs.

The Hope House program will include two phases. Phase One will house 12 men in a pre-treatment program, with 10 beds to serve other homeless men enrolled in an off-site program for substance-abuse treatment. Participants will pay rent based on their incomes. The limit for stay in Phase One is 90 days.

Phase Two will house 48 men committed to a long-term transitional program. They will be employed, pay full rent, and participate in an intensive recovery program to prepare them for independent living. Most are expected to stay from 18 to 24 months.

Hope House participants will be enrolled through a coordinated intake, assessment, and referral system at the ROCK and other agencies. The project will have on-site staff at all times and additional security on weekends. A variety of on-site and off-site supportive services will be offered to the participants on the evenings and weekends:

• Substance abuse services, including on-site 12-step groups, on-site accountability sessions, and off-site treatment.

• Employment and related services, such as on-site life-skills training and educational support groups. Participants will also be referred to employment readiness service programs, as needed.

• Comprehensive supportive services, including on-site counseling, group therapy, and one-on-one peer counseling.

• Community responsibility duties, including assisting in the maintenance and security of the property.

Once residents have completed a recovery program, obtained full-time jobs, and achieved a stable level of self-sufficiency, staff members will work with each individual to explore permanent housing options.

Hope House is the first of twelve such projects, one of which is to be located in each of the city's council districts, based on a plan advocated by City Council Member Debi Starnes and Rev. Walter Kimbrough of Cascade United Methodist Church. The goal is to get individual churches, preferably in alliances such as CHNDC, to act as local sponsors in each area.

CHNDC serves as a model of ecumenical cooperation, with religious congregations taking an active role in planning community services and guiding development of the area where their facilities are located. Central Presbyterian, Immaculate Conception, and Trinity UMC formed CHNDC in 1994 to create a multi-use, mixed income neighborhood on Capitol Hill and to coordinate their social ministries in that area. In addition to its role with Hope House, the organization pushed successfully for the City Plaza development across from City Hall in lieu of a high-rise parking garage. CHNDC also influenced the site plan for the new central office building of the Atlanta Public Schools and recently submitted a formal proposal to the city for multi-use development of the block south of City Hall.