Midlands Simon 'swamped' with demand for servicesUnprecedented demand arising from the housing crisis has resulted in a local homelessness charity saying it can't proceed with a proposal to close emergency accommodation services in Athlone and transfer them to a new Tullamore facility. "At the moment, we are absolutely swamped with the demand for our services," said Tony O'Riordan, CEO of the Midland Simon Community. "We would never have seen it as a problem when Midlands Simon started (in 2004), but in the last few years it's become more of an issue." Since 2009, Midlands Simon has operated a six-person emergency accommodation unit on the Ballymahon Road in Athlone. Midlands Simon and Sophia recently went out to tender on construction work to convert Clonamore House from a hotel into emergency accommodation.

Source: Irish Independent April 15, 2022 23:30 UTC