266 State Street
CAPITAL PROJECT
The future of progressive, lifesaving programming for unhoused people.
For the past 35 years, Downtown Evening Soup Kitchen has supported those experiencing homelessness and living in poverty in New Haven. We have always believed in the power of community to make real and lasting changes in the lives of the people we serve. In coordination with our partners, DESK is developing New Haven’s first Downtown Drop-in & Resource Center at 266 State Street to provide more comprehensive services than ever before.
Our Vision
ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYONE
✓ Street-level
✓ Wheelchair-accessible and ADA compliant
✓ Visible, identifiable, and welcoming
✓ Downtown—to meet people where they are
ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYONE
✓ Designed for our Guests and by our Guests
✓ Trauma-informed
✓ Gender-responsive
✓ Client-centered
ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYONE
✓ Basic needs: food, clothing, bathrooms
✓ Harm reduction supplies and interventions
✓ Outreach services and case management
✓ Medical and behavioral health services
✓ Coordinated Access Network entry
Basic Needs + Next Level Services
People have always come to DESK to access basic needs in a trusted environment. Once there, our staff and partners have the opportunity to connect them with the services and care that can move them beyond homelessness and toward a greater sense of stability and improved wellbeing.
Basic Needs
DESK’s Drop-in Center will meet people where they are.
✓ Food, drinks, bathrooms, refuge, WiFi, lockers, harm reduction supplies.
✓ Volunteers and outreach workers, side-by-side.
✓ And doing what we’ve always done: building community.
Next Level Services
DESK’s Resource Center will move people beyond homelessness.
✓ Offices and examination rooms for Hill Health’s Homeless Healthcare Department, meeting space for a consumer advisory board, and swing space for outreach workers, shelter/ housing intake, and mental health first aid.
✓ Plus computers, washer/dryer, and shower facilities.
Freshly Prepared Meals
DESK’s Kitchen will promote health, community, and equity.
✓ With volunteers, staff, and guests shoulder to shoulder.
✓ Moving more meals to more people than ever before.
✓ Prepared with dignity, respect, and purpose.
Long-Term Capacity
DESK’s Administrative Floor will ensure we’ll be around as long as needed.
✓ Greater impact means putting a stake in the ground.
✓ More administrative space for professional development, financial control systems, data management, performance evaluation, and sustainable operations.
✓ Open-floor design will maintain flexibility, preparing for some future programmatic use.
No one should go it alone.
DESK is fortunate to work as part of a network of partners in homelessness and food assistance services in New Haven. The renovation of 266 State Street will incorporate space for our service partners to operate, most notably Cornell Scott Hill Health Center, whose Department of Homeless Health Care will be based out of the second floor. Additionally, there will be space for private consultation and group meetings for our provider-partners, including Columbus House, Liberty Community Services, Connecticut Mental Health Center, and the Greater New Haven Coordinated Access Network, the last whom will be able to conduct onsite intake for the shelter system.
Building Renovations
Renovation Team
Architect
Project Manager
Construction Manager
Project Funding
DESK’s community-based approach extends beyond our programs and outreach efforts to our funding strategy, as well. For this project, we are accessing a variety of public and private resources to ensure broad-based buy-in and commitment. Homelessness is a community problem that requires a community solution.
Kitchen
$758,135
DROP-IN CENTER
$341,458
MEDICAL CLINIC & CONSULTATION
$585,308
HVAC
$387,366
Elevator
$622,484
RESTROOMS
$197,365
ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICES
$293,002
ARCHITECTURAL & CONTINGENCY
$670,667
REVENUE-TO-DATE
| US DEPT. OF HOUSING & URBAN DEVELOPMENT | 1,438,399 |
| STATE OF CONNECTICUT | 736,765 |
| CORNELL SCOTT HILL HEALTH CENTER | 150,000 |
| CITY OF NEW HAVEN (HUD FUNDS) | 150,000 |
| CONNECTICUT FOOD SHARE | 114,000 |
| YALE UNIVERSITY | 100,000 |
| PRIVATE DONATIONS (INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILIES) | 434,799 |
TOTAL REVENUE $3,223,963
UPDATED MARCH 15, 2023
