This article is from page 17 of the 2006-06-13 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 17 JPG
CAMPAIGNERS are confident that a proposed new transitional housing service will serve the needs of homeless people within Clare.
Clare County Council has acquired a site near Ennis Town Centre for the provision of Transitional Housing for Homeless Persons. A €2.1 million budget to cover the cost of acquisition and refurbishment has been approved by Minster Noel Ahern TD, Minister for Housing & Urban Renewal.
Laurel Lodge will be located on the site of a former B&B on the Clare Road and will have the capacity to accommodate 12 people, all men. The centre will be staffed by the St Vincent de Paul who will lease the building from Clare County Council. St Vincent de Paul worked closely with Clare County Council, Ennis Town Council, the Health Services Executive and Clare Homeless Forum over the past five years to identify and acquire a site within the town centre.
The centre will provide temporary accommodation for people who have found it difficult to acquire affordable housing.
Outreach workers will work and community welfare officers will maintain contact with residents once they leave the centre and will provide assistance in finding permanent housing. Referrals will be made by the Homeless Unit of Clare County Council.
Councillor Joe Arkins (FG), Chairperson of the Homeless Forum, said the move represented a vital step forward in the implementation of the Homeless Action Plan for Clare.
“The centre will provide a vital first point of contact for people who the St Vincent de Paul may not have come across. It also provides a location for outreach staff to keep in touch with people and help them find permanent housing when they leave.”
Cllr Arkins added, “I think it is the optimum site. Frankie Neylon lives in that area and I think that neighbours will be pleased to see it go in there. There is an older community living there, a lot of second generation families who I think will accept it.
“We expect Laurel Lodge to be a good neighbour in the community, no vagrancy will be tolerated there. Some of the local councillors visited a similar centre in Limerick and I think they were quite surprised.”
Mayor of Ennis Frankie Neylon said the service will be of great benefit to Ennis
Director of Clare County Council’s Housing and Social Policy said the Council was delighted to have found the site. She added that it would provide an “absolutely essential service for the town”.
The Council will seek planning permission to develop the centre, which is expected to be operational within four months.