Work to start on Westside homeless ‘hubs’

Galway City Tribune – Ground preparation works will begin next week on land behind Westside Shopping Centre, ahead of the delivery of 15 modular housing ‘hubs’ for homeless families.

The units will be delivered to the site in September/October and the service – which will be managed by the Peter McVerry Trust – will be up and running by the end of the year.

The €2 million scheme – funded by the Department of Housing – will be a mix of 15 two- and three-bed hubs and a further two units will be used for management to have a 24-hour presence on the site. Each of the units will be between 50 and 70 square metres in size.

They are intended to be alternative accommodation for families who are currently being housed in hostels, hotels and B&Bs.

The hubs will be on the site for up to five years, and were given the green light last February by Galway City Council Chief Executive Brendan McGrath, who invoked emergency powers in an effort to deal with Galway’s housing crisis.
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