Ballinasloe modular home project to be 'delivered during 2024'

Over 90 modular homes to accommodate Ukrainian refugees in Ballinasloe look set to be “delivered during 2024”, the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth has said.

While “exact delivery dates are still under review”, the government department said 92 units housing families of four will be located at Poolboy, Ballinasloe for beneficiaries of temporary protection.

The completion timelines are subject to any technical issues arising during construction, it added, saying that site conditions, remedial works, boundaries, ESB connections etc, had delayed completion of other sites included in the programme.

At the end of November, Ukrainian families moved into 64 modular homes in Clonminch, Tullamore as part of the Government-approved modular home scheme which will see 700 homes built and completed throughout the country to house 2,800 people.

Each unit manufactured off-site is believed to have an average cost of €145,000, and include a kitchen-dining-living area, a bathroom, a small bedroom and a large bedroom.

A community information session was held on November 8 last in Ballinasloe in relation to the development, and a community engagement team has been established to engage directly with elected representatives, relevant local authorities, local development companies, and other entities and individuals, the department explained.

In a brief statement, it said the purpose of the team is to “improve the flow of information regarding arrivals into areas and to help equip local communities with the accurate information required to help them understand the current situation and to assist with the welcome and integration process for new arrivals”.