Years after promise of a new integration strategy, Dublin City Council still doesn’t have one
There’s a desperate need for a roadmap to improve efforts to help people navigate immigrant life, and connect, say councillors and community workers.
Four psychiatrists have referred her to a centre in Cherry Orchard that, because of short staffing and the HSE recruitment freeze, has cut its inpatient beds.
But because the Luas shares city streets with other road users, there’s only so much that can be done to expand capacity, says Mark Gleeson, of Rail Users Ireland.
Studies have found that asylum seekers are more likely than the general population to have post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.
At a meeting Monday, a council engineer said it was doing speed surveys and could look at making changes. “We need to take some actions now,” he said.
An audit of playgrounds in the county found gaps in Loughshinny, Portrane, Oldtown, Hazelbury Park and, possibly, Hartstown Park.
On a local WhatsApp group in Dublin 8, neighbours try to ensure that stuff that’s still useable keeps getting used, rather than being thrown in the bin.
Meanwhile, a revamp of the park itself is stuck in limbo because of a mysterious legal issue.
“This is great news for the area,” says independent Councillor John Lyons, who has been pushing for the playground for years.
But some people have had unexplained difficulties trying to get beds.
The council has committed to pay at least €40m over that 20 years to rent Avalon House, after taking over the lease from the Peter McVerry Trust in 2020.
But Niels Warburton says this promised public viewing spot doesn’t live up to his expectations – or what the developer promised in its planning application.
When Bolivian officials, and officials from the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs, asked what was going on, the Department of Justice blamed the airlines.