New downtown Eugene Youth HUB will offer drop-in support for teens

A new Youth HUB is set to open in downtown Eugene in September, giving young people a walk-in place for referrals, basic needs support and a community space created by Connected Lane County, Ophelia’s Place and A Family for Every Child.

The project is designed as a third space for youth who need somewhere that is not school, not home and not an emergency room. In practical terms, the HUB is meant to function as a drop-in resource center where teens and young adults can connect with help before a crisis grows.

That need is clear in Lane County. A Family for Every Child serves youth and young adults ages 14 to 24 who are at risk of or currently experiencing homelessness, and the organization says there are more than 500 unaccompanied youth experiencing homelessness in Lane County at any given time. Putting the HUB in downtown Eugene places it in the city center, where it is easier to see, easier to reach and closer to other daily stops.

Connected Lane County already operates drop-in services, giving the coalition an existing model for direct youth access. Ophelia’s Place, which says it is dedicated to empowering girls ages 10 to 18 to thrive in a complex world, has also used drop-in programming before. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the organization shifted to Zoom drop-in meetings when in-person hours disappeared, showing how quickly youth-serving groups have had to adapt to keep contact open.

For teens and families, the new HUB is expected to matter most as an immediate entry point. A young person who needs help with food, shelter, counseling or family resources will be able to start with a single downtown stop rather than trying to navigate several agencies alone. The three nonprofits are folding those pieces into one shared space so that a basic need can turn into a referral, and a referral can turn into ongoing support.

The downtown location also gives Eugene a more visible youth-services presence at street level. Instead of pushing young people toward a distant office or a crisis setting, the HUB brings support into the center of the city, where it can serve as a stabilizing place for youth who are unsheltered, disconnected or simply looking for a safe place to land.