Curated News
By: NewsRamp Editorial Staff
August 21, 2025
HAWC Opens One Safe Place Houston: Transformative Campus for Survivors
TLDR
- HAWC's One Safe Place Houston triples survivor capacity, offering a strategic advantage in community safety and integrated service delivery for domestic violence support.
- The 5.5-acre campus includes 135 apartments with on-site counseling, legal advocacy, medical care, childcare, and education programs in a secure, trauma-informed environment.
- One Safe Place Houston provides comprehensive support that empowers survivors to heal with dignity and rebuild their lives in a violence-free community.
- GSMA Architects designed this transformative campus with survivor input, featuring trauma-informed spaces that balance privacy with community connectivity for healing.
Impact - Why it Matters
This development matters because domestic and sexual violence remain pervasive public health crises affecting millions nationwide. One Safe Place Houston represents a paradigm shift in how communities support survivors, moving from fragmented services to integrated, trauma-informed care that addresses both immediate safety and long-term recovery. The campus's comprehensive approach—combining housing, education, counseling, and workforce development—directly impacts survivors' ability to rebuild their lives while reducing the cycle of violence. For the broader community, this model demonstrates how thoughtful design and coordinated services can effectively address complex social issues, potentially serving as a blueprint for other cities grappling with similar challenges. The investment in such facilities ultimately contributes to safer, healthier communities for everyone.
Summary
The Houston Area Women’s Center (HAWC) has officially opened One Safe Place Houston, a transformative 5.5-acre campus designed to provide comprehensive, trauma-informed support for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and sex trafficking. This innovative facility triples HAWC's capacity, eventually serving up to 350 survivors through 135 supportive housing apartments and integrated on-site services including behavioral health counseling, legal advocacy, medical forensic care, childcare, a Houston ISD elementary school, workforce readiness programs, and financial literacy training. The campus represents a collective vision where healing is supported through both programs and intentional design, creating a secure environment that prioritizes dignity, resilience, and renewal for survivors and their families.
GSMA Architects, a Houston-based firm known for community-centered work, led the design process with deep intentionality, collaborating with survivor advocates and frontline staff to create a trauma-informed environment that balances privacy with connectivity. CORT Furniture Rental partnered with HAWC to furnish the entire campus with high-quality, multi-functional furnishings that transform the space into a true home rather than just a facility. Key figures including Sonia Corrales, HAWC's Interim President & CEO, Ann Rosenwinkel of GSMA Architects, and Todd Shell from CORT all emphasized how the physical environment communicates safety, support, and community investment in survivors' wellbeing.
The creation of One Safe Place Houston represents a bold public health response to intimate partner violence and sexual assault, demonstrating what's possible when organizations, design experts, community partners, and civic leaders collaborate. Supporters can become Lightkeepers through HAWC's website at www.hawc.org, providing reliable funding that survivors depend on daily. This comprehensive approach moves beyond traditional shelter models to offer integrated services that address both immediate safety needs and long-term healing and empowerment for those affected by violence.
Source Statement
This curated news summary relied on content disributed by citybiz. Read the original source here, HAWC Opens One Safe Place Houston: Transformative Campus for Survivors
