Legacy House Set to Open

The following story appeared in mLive on February 9, 2022. Watch our News page and social media for additional information.

Legacy House to offer transitional housing for homeless LGBTQ+ youth in Kalamazoo

OutFront Kalamazoo’s office at 340 S. Rose St in Kalamazoo, Michigan.
(Joel Bissell | MLive.com) Joel Bissell | MLive.com

KALAMAZOO, MI — OutFront Kalamazoo is in the process of preparing to open Kalamazoo’s first long-term transitional housing facility that will cater primarily to LGBTQ+ youth.

The nonprofit organization, which serves the region’s LGBTQ+ community, purchased the property in December for $25,000 from the Kalamazoo Public Housing Commission, according to Kalamazoo County property records. The organization expects to be ready to house its first residents in the space this spring, OutFront Kalamazoo executive director Amy Hunter told MLive/The Kalamazoo Gazette.

Multiple community partners — including LISC Kalamazoo, The Irving S. Gilmore Foundation and Kalamazoo Community Foundation — worked with the Kalamazoo Public Housing Commission to renovate the property after the housing commission purchased it in 2020, Hunter said. The housing commission, she said, used grant funds to purchase the home in 2020.

The property, a three-bedroom home in the city’s Vine neighborhood, has just a few minor renovations that need done before it opens, Hunter said. There are no major or structural repairs anticipated that would slow the organization’s plans to open this spring.

Hunter said the home is being set up to be able to house anywhere from six to 10 people between the ages of 18 and 24 at any given time. Wraparound services will be offered at the home, as part of a six-month program for residents.

In addition to the three bedrooms for residents, a fourth bedroom/office will provide space for a house manager, she said. There will also be a storage area, for residents’ belongings. While someone in need of emergency services won’t likely be turned away if they showed up on the doorstep, Hunter said, staff will likely help them find other facilities that can help meet those more immediate needs.

“It’s not a shelter as much as it is transitional housing,” she said. “We want to be able to help (residents) out with wraparound services and help them to learn life skills and set them up for success by doing what we can to put a dent in at-risk, chronic homelessness in Kalamazoo.”

The need for such a facility in the area is enormous, Hunter said. Advocacy group True Colors United, through research with the Williams Institute at UCLA, has found that while an estimated 7% of youth identify as LGBTQ+ in the U.S., upward of 40% of homeless youth in the nation identify as such.

“We are serving a niche population, but it is a population that is in desperate need of support not just in Kalamazoo but nationwide,” Hunter said. “So, we really feel very fortunate to have had the partners we have had over the past several years to make this a reality. I can’t stress enough how needed.

“OutFront is really proud to be out front on this here in Michigan. I think it’s a terrific project and we are set up for success with this and we will be very soon serving clients that we will help set up for success.”

The organization will begin accepting applications for potential residents in mid-late March. Those interested in learning more information can contact OutFront Kalamazoo Communications Director Grace Gheen, at grace@outfrontkzoo.org or 269-349-4234.

The nonprofit is also looking for donations to help furnish the home at this time. Those interested in helping out with that, may also contact Gheen.

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