Meeting hears Ballinrobe is becoming a 'dumping ground' for homeless

Councillors in south Mayo have claimed that Ballinrobe has become a 'dumping ground' for homeless people from other parts of the county and they have had enough.

The issue of homeless people being relocated to a building in Ballinrobe was raised by the three local councillors at the monthly meeting of Mayo County Council where they all stated that the town can not take anymore.

A large number of homeless people have been placed in a hotel in the town with one councillor describing it as 'a halfway house'.

Fianna Fáil councillor Damien Ryan said that the south Mayo town was being overburdened with homeless people claiming that 65 percent of homeless people in the county were ending up in Ballinrobe.

“There has to be a rebalance because there can't be 65 percent going to the south of the county when the need isn't 65 percent. Will there be an attempt to balance it across the various municipal districts ... Ballinrobe has taken more than enough,” he said.

He was supported by Fine Gael councillor Michael Burke who said that the local councillors had nothing to do with the current situation and people were afraid to walk past the hotel.

“This is a disgraceful situation and one which leaves a sour taste for the people of Ballinrobe. We have something which should never have been put in place and we are covering for most of the county. It has gotten so serious that some people are afraid to pass that particular building and that is not good or pleasant,” he said.

Cllr Burke added that they have no problem looking after their own homeless but they do not have the services to look after people from other parts of the county.

“We don't want to import people from Ballina, Castlebar or any other place so please deal with this matter once and for all,” he said.

Independent councillor Patsy O'Brien echoed the comments of the other councillors saying that Ballinrobe was becoming a dumping ground for homeless people.

“Whatever can be done should be done because there is a perceived thought that Ballinrobe is being used as a dumping ground and that is not good or fair. It is not fair for a halfway house to be put into Ballinrobe and while we all accept the rehabilitation, you must put these people in places where there are more services,” he said.

Director of Services with responsibility for housing, Tom Gilligan replied that they will look into the situation but added 'it is hard to know who will be homeless from one week to the next'. He also commented that the council were looking to put in place a strategy which will phase out the use of hotels and B&Bs as emergency accommodation for people who are homeless by the end of the year.