Chillicothe Library all booked up; warming station causing concerns for parents

CHILLICOTHE, Ohio (WSYX) — With a lack of housing and shelters in Chillicothe, many in the unhoused population are heading to the local library for a safe place to stay.

ABC6 On Your Side Problem Solvers received calls from members of the community who feared this strategy might come at a risk to the children using library services.

"Normal, every day, working people don't want to come into a place of business like this and see homeless people camped out," David Walter told ABC6 On Your Side Problem Solvers after he was evicted from his apartment last year. "I stay quiet, stay in the corner. I don't bother nobody."

Walter is one of the 154 people counted this year in Ross County's Point-In-Time homeless count: A 28% jump in population from the year before.

Amid the spike, the main library saw its number of unhoused visitors increase as well as in rooms adjacent to its children's section.

"Every seat was taken, some people in wheelchairs were up here,"Courtney Lewis with the Chillicothe Library said. "So, every seat is taken, every couch spot is taken. It's the fine line of how we handle this?"

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In November, the library decided to put the $500,000 renovation scheduled for its annex space on hold to create a warming station on the property.

The administration hired a peer support staffer full-time who made more than 200 referrals last year for the library's unhoused guests that included drug and/or alcohol rehabilitation.

De-escalation training is also available for all employees.

"A lot of times we'll hear from patrons or neighbors who say, 'I really appreciate you doing this, but I'm probably going to go to Northside,'" Lewis said. "We'll say, 'We understand.'"

However, this just isn't a crisis in Chillicothe. Libraries across Central Ohio are finding themselves on the front line of the housing crisis and lack of affordable housing.

The Newark Library allows those who have no permanent homes to check out books and created a room for homeless specialists to meet with those specific library guests. In Delaware, all staff is trained in homeless-related issues. The same training is offered in Columbus, with its main library hosting more than 500,000 visits last year, including the unhoused.

Chillicothe Mayor Luke Feeney told Problem Solvers his city needs 100 new homes just to keep up with current needs and demand.

"What that's doing is putting downward pressure onto lower, more affordable housing," Mayor Feeney said. "A significant amount of our homeless population is also our veterans."

According to the mayor, the city of Chillicothe is trying a new plan of attack by purchasing its own land to develop. City leaders are trying to recruit a builder to create another 40 homes on the site of an old elementary school they purchased that has been demolished.

Until more available housing reduces the $600 rent for the average one-bedroom apartment in Chillicothe, advocates say the need for more homeless resources will continue.

Walter told Problem Solvers he was making shy of $900 a month before he lost his job last year. He started a new job at a fast-food restaurant last week.

To make matters worse, Community Action, which runs the emergency shelter in Chillicothe, said it's also running out of funds.

The agency can no longer afford the $50,000 per month cost to keep the shelter open. As of now, doors will close on April 31st of this year.

If you have a problem you'd like the ABC 6 On Your Side Problem Solvers Team to investigate, please contact them at tips@abc6onyourside.com or call 614-512-4993.