Housing

Criteria

Sheltered housing is available to those fulfilling the following criteria

  • over age 65
  • able to look after daily activities of living (wash, dress feed onself)
  • priority will be given to people who have lived for an numer of years in Naas and surrounding areas
    (this is to nurture sense of community but to ‘feed off the sense of community that has already been established’)

Criteria for prospective clients will include the following:

  • 75% of residents will be from local authority housing list or eligible to be.
  • 25% will be of independent means
  • Must be able to look after activities of daily living.
  • Priority will be given to people resident in Naas and surrounding areas for a number of years(this is to foster and engage in community support and participation)

Features

  • The facility is sheltered housing, promoting independent living.
  • There will be a resident caretaker and a full time manager (9am-5pm Mon-Fri)
  • The caretaker will not be on call after hours. Pendant alarms will be available to all residents.
  • Each apartment will have a kitchen, sitting room, bedroom and bathroom with its own front door.
  • CCTV will be installed to enhance security.
  • There will be a coffee shop, open to the public, on the ground floor.

Funding for the housing development is available from the Dept. of Environment, Heritage and Local Government once the main contractor is on site.

Progress & Acknowledgements

All preparatory work done to date has been made possible by donations. Work has been carried out by architects, conservation architects, structural engineers, mechanical and electrical engineers, archaeologists, for Archasological dig, to erect hoarding and secure the site, to surface the works entrance.

Project Management has been provided free of charge for the housing development and the development of the nuns’ chapel by Jerry Conlon, in the capable hands of Ward Frisbee.

Site investigations have been carried out free of charge by I.G.S.L.

An incredible number of individuals and businesses have dug deep in their pockets to enable the development to get planning permission and to be able to submit our application for funding, which was submitted in early March 2008 to Kildare County Council for referral to the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

Special thanks to the Chukka Chukkas who donated over €100,000 to the project, proceeds of The Ultimate Golf Challenge. A special plaque will be erected to acknowledge this incredible support when the housing development is opened. We were shocked and deeply saddened at the recent sudden death of an amazing and inspiring member of the Chukka Chukkas, Noel Farrelly. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dhílis.
The Baldonnell Singers, in the capable hands of Margaret Hayes and accompanied by Celine Byrne, Paul Lenehan and the Army No. 1 Band, The Heritage Council, Kildare County Council Conservation grant have been amongst the larger funders to date.

Our original architect was Tom Cowper to whom we are indebted for his perseverance in the midst of a litany of obstacles in the early days. Sadly, for health reasons, Tom has had to resign. Campbell Conroy Hickey has taken over the brief and Fergus McCormick is the appointed architect.

Expression of interest

Expressions of interest should be registered with Margharita Solon at
67 Kingsfurze Avenue, Naas, Co. Kildare.