Costello welcomes Catholic Housing Agency statement on Fr Scully House

6 December 2014

by Cllr Joe Costello

I welcome the announcement by the Catholic Housing Aid Society  (CHAS) that they are putting their 99 new units of accommodation in Fr Scully House, Gardiner Street,  at the disposal of Dublin City Council in response to the present housing emergency.

However, it is not clear what will happen to the 30 or so elderly men and women who previously lived in the old Fr Scully House this year prior to its demolition and reconstruction.  They had packed their belongings in June of this year expecting to be rehoused in July, after eight years in temporary accommodation.

Moreover, the fate of the tenants from Dublin City Council who were nominated for Fr Scully House and who also had been waiting for months for their new accommodation while the unseemly row continued between CHAS and Dublin City Council needs to be clarified.

However, the new sense of urgency about opening up available accommodation will contribute enormously to resolving the crisis of housing and homelessness in the Capital.