One of the most common complaints about Port Townsend is the lack of activities for the youth.

Local nonprofit OWL360 has the solution: The Nest, Uptown’s soon to be newest community coffee house focused on hiring and serving youth and young adults.

“One-hundred percent of the proceeds from the coffee shop will go to pay youth and go right directly back into programming,” said Kelli Parcher, the executive director for OWL360.

The Nest is set inside in the old dentistry space, with a revamped interior providing coffee, tea, and activities like open mics and educational seminars.

OWL360 hopes to have The Nest open sometime early next month.

The group has already been operating the Pfeiffer House in Uptown, offering young adults income-based housing since April 2021. Their next project aims to expand on that success.

“The Pfeiffer House has been great in the sense that those young folks have all of a sudden found a community,” Parcher said. “They feel like they’re connected to peers, which seems to be a challenge I hear of a lot.”

The house, however, only has enough space for six apartments, and there are many more youth in the county who can fit in that space.

To make sure everything stays in line with the values of the youth they intend to serve during the expansion, OWL360 formed a youth advisory council made up of Jefferson County residents ranging in age from 14 to 26.

“Youth and young adults have really no space to hang out,” Parcher said. “We’re trying to provide that for them as well as give them an experience here, but also — most importantly — connect anybody that needs resources to resources.”

Those resources could include assistance with secondary education, mental health, substance disorders, and tutors.

“Our intention is to not just point them in the direction,” Parcher said. “We’re going to try and walk alongside them.”

To help young people on their paths, advocates aplenty will be onsite to assist.

“All of our young people that are working here are going to be cross-trained so they’ll be trained in some type of advocacy work,” Parcher said.

She noted it would vary based on age and experience; a professional advocate would also be onsite.

The group has also partnered with WorksSource Washington to assist in career ambitions with a base to meet with potential clients in the space.

“I think our community providers are excited to be able to come up here and meet with folks or connect with them or provide programming,” Parcher said.

In addition to a wide-open gathering space with lush recliners, there are two private rooms that they plan to offer on a reservation basis for study, therapy sessions, meetings with advocates, or just for a quiet, private space.

To learn more about the project, go to facebook.com/thenestporttownsend.