This Is Fantastic – Dublin’s Digital Hub Will House 100 Homeless People For Cold Winter Nights

This isn’t a solution to the fundamental problem of homelessness, but it’s certainly an excellent start.

The Digital Hub – a campus in Dublin 8 that houses 90 digital start-up companies – is set to accommodate some 100 homeless people during this year’s cold winter nights, according to a report in today’s Irish Times.

The building on the campus, a former industrial premises which is not currently in use by any company, was identified by the Dublin Region Homeless Executive, and the temporary arrangements are set to remain in place until April.

A rough sleeper count in November of last year yielded 168 people on the streets in a single night

This is a part of the Executive’s Cold Weather Initiative, which was established in 2010 and aims to prevent deaths among people sleeping rough in the city. However the flow of newly homeless people due to the recession and housing crisis has put tremendous strain on the system – a rough sleeper count in November of last year yielded 168 people on the streets in a single night.

When Jonathan Corrie died in close proximity to Leinster House last year, a more concerted effort was made to provide a short-term fix for the cold nights; by April, the number had fallen to 105.

This latest measure won’t fix the fundamental problem by any means – and inter-party tensions within the coalition in relation to rent controls are certainly not helping matters.

But, combined with the development of 22 modular housing units across the city over the coming weeks, there’s certainly a bit more hope in the air in the lead-up to Christmas.