YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The units are assembled and drywall and HVAC are being installed, with the first veterans expected to move into the new transitional housing by year’s end.
But the construction of the 4,200-square-foot Veteran’s Haven sets it apart from other housing. It’s composed of 14 shipping containers.
Veteran’s Haven at Hillman Street and West Warren Avenue on the city’s south side is a project of Axess Family Services. The organization operates other veterans housing in the Mahoning Valley as well as in Canton, Lorain, Kent and Akron.
Each shipping container is one unit with a bedroom, bathroom and exterior door. One is wheelchair accessible. Common space including a kitchen, living room, laundry area and staff offices connect the 14 housing units. Staff will be at Veteran’s Haven 24 hours a day. Drugs and alcohol are prohibited, and a curfew will be enforced.
Brandi Parker, Axess assistant director of veterans services, said veterans will live in the units for between six and eight months and then move to more permanent housing either in public housing or with a private landlord. Veteran’s Haven is open to men and women.
“And while that’s happening, our case managers on staff are girding the veteran up, creating independence, getting them connected to the resources that they need, whether it’s health, mental health, employment or housing,” Parker said.
Veteran’s Haven residents are required to participate, she added.
Axess owns lots across Hillman from Veteran’s Haven where it plans to build permanent housing for veterans and their families.
“That’s where the real need is,” said Hawah Okai, Axess director of veteran services.
Parker said Veteran’s Haven’s anticipated completion is this summer. It will then have to pass inspections by the city, Mahoning County and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. If that goes smoothly, she eyes an October move-in.
Mahoning County commissioners contributed $125,000 in American Rescue Plan Act money for the project; city Councilman Julius Oliver, D-1st, contributed $100,000 in ARPA funds; and $675,000 came from the VA. Another $400,000 is left to be raised.
Susan Krawchyk, executive director of the Mahoning County Veterans Service Commission, said there is a need for veterans housing, particularly for women both with and without children.
She said there’s always a need for more housing. Veterans face many barriers to safe housing, including the cost of private accommodations and waiting lists for public housing, she explained.
“I know most of the shelters here are full, so we have to send some of the veterans to Ravenna because maybe they have some vacancies,” she said.
The idea for transitional veteran housing in Youngstown started about five years ago, Parker said. She saw container homes at a conference she attended, and shortly thereafter, Ed Macabobby, owner of Steel Valley Container Structures in North Lima, contacted her.
Oliver had given Parker’s contact information to Macabobby, she said.
“And it was just one of those moments, like the universe and the stars,” Parker said. “I was like, wait a minute, are you serious? He’s like, ‘Yeah, and we’ve been trying to do this in Youngstown. We have investors …”
Pictured at top: Hawah Okai and Brandi Parker of Axess Family Services.