This article is from page 7 of the 2006-10-31 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 7 JPG
ENNIS Town Council has requested Clare County Council to address the concerns of residents opposed to the establishment of a homeless hostel in the town.
Earlier this year, Clare County Council lodged plans to convert the existing Laurel Lodge on Ennis’s Clare Road to a hostel for 13 homeless men.
The cost of the project is estimated at €2.1 million and the St Vincent de Paul will operate the building.
Local residents Patrick Donnelly, Ann-Marie Donnelly, Helen Broderick and Christopher Walsh have lodged an objection against the proposal, claiming that the plan will attract a significant anti-social element to the locality.
Now, the Town Council has requested further information on the proposal from the County Council, throwing into doubt the timescale set by Cllr Joe Arkins (FG) to have the hostel open early in the New Year.
In its request, the town council has stated it has received a letter of objection signed by a number of objectors who argue that the proposed development will have a negative impact on the residential amenity of nearby properties by virtue of noise and nuisance and loitering, which may be associated with the proposed development. The town council has stated that development proposals for new or extensions to residential institutions will be permitted, provided that they would not significantly detract from the amenity and character of the surrounding area.
The town council has also stated that it considers it appropriate that where possible residential institutions relocate within defined settlement boundaries.
The objectors said that they had “deep and well founded concerns” over the proposed development. They state, “We may be accused of acting in a NIMBY (Not In My BackYard) manner, but this proposal is virtually in our backyards. . . There has been no consultation with local residents by the St Vincent de Paul and they refused to have a public meeting regarding the matter. We are left with no option but to object in the strongest possible manner to the location of this homeless centre.”
In their objection, they say, “We do not cause any of the ills of society and we do not want them foisted upon us by others in a residential area.”