About the Community Shelter Board

The Community Shelter Board is ending homelessness in our community. We allocate and oversee more than $13 million in funding for homeless programs and services. Last year, these programs served 8,000 individuals and family members facing a housing crisis.

The Community Shelter Board was created in 1986 to respond to the growing problem of homelessness in Franklin County. CSB’s founders include the Metropolitan Area Church Council, the United Way of Central Ohio, the Columbus Chamber of Commerce, The Columbus Foundation, City of Columbus, Franklin County Board of Commissioners, and the Alcohol, Drug and Mental Health Board of Franklin County.

Neighbors at the breaking point

As the economy stalls, so do people’s prospects for earning a decent wage. The sharp rise in demand for emergency shelter has shifted from a temporary surge to prolonged distress. Shelters housing families have run of out room, resulting in a rise of overflow shelter use and costs of more than 5,000%.

The nationally recognized programs of the Community Shelter Board provide an opportunity for individuals and families to get back on their feet. With a coordinated approach of linking families and adults to benefits and community resources, the Community Shelter Board is rebuilding lives in central Ohio.

Our Approach

The Community Shelter Board leads a strategic community plan to end homelessness, called Rebuilding Lives. Strategies are organized into four broad goals:

Access – People at imminent risk of homelessness are linked to community resources.
Crisis Response – People experiencing homelessness receive assistance to address their immediate housing crisis.
Transition – People experiencing homelessness transition from crisis to stability.
Advocacy – Resources and public policy support solutions to end homelessness.

Collaboration

Eliminating homelessness takes collective resolve from all sectors – government, corporations, non-profit service providers, and the faith community. The Community Shelter Board brings together diverse organizations in Franklin County to work together as a cohesive system rather than as a fragmented set of resources.

Current partner agencies working to end homelessness are:

AIDS Resource Center Ohio Homeless Families Foundation Volunteers of America of Greater Ohio
Amethyst, Inc. Huckleberry House YMCA of Central Ohio
Catholic Social Services Lutheran Social Services of Central Ohio/Faith Mission YWCA Columbus
Community Housing Network Maryhaven National Church Residences
Communities in Schools of Central Ohio The Salvation Army in Central Ohio  
Gladden Community House Southeast, Inc. / Friends of the Homeless