Former Waterford convent is set to be turned into social housing for older people

Council to consult the public about plan to convert 19th-century Sisters of Mercy building in Kilmacthomas into six social homes

The former Sisters of Mercy convent in Kilmacthomas Co Waterford is set to be transformed into six social homes for older people.

Waterford City and County Council plans to convert a 19th century former convent in the west of the county into a six-unit social housing complex for older tenants.

The council also intends to construct five accommodation units on grounds at the rear of the building in Kilmacthomas.

The new accommodation will be constructed within the three-storey building’s existing framework and will feature five two-bed apartments and one single-bed unit.

The exterior site will accommodate six semi-detached single-storey, two-bedroom dwellings.

According to Waterford City and County Council housing officer Ivan Grimes, the plans accord with the council’s commitment to “government policy enabling older people to live in their own home with dignity and independence for as long as possible”.

The development does not require planning permission but a public consultation process will be conducted in respect of installing a new staircase and lift in the building.

Built in the late 1880s, the former Sisters of Mercy convent is adjacent to the Waterford Greenway and is also near to Our Lady of Mercy Church and Kilmacthomas Primary School.

The site originally also provided school facilities for 300 children before it eventually evolved into a primary school.

That school was demolished in the 1990s and replaced with a small church, which still stands.

The convent building was vacated around this time and became unused and dilapidated for several years before the council acquired it in June 2021.

Mr Grimes says the site is “extremely well situated for age friendly development, with easy access to services and facilities and to Waterford Greenway”.

He adds that “reusing the existing building is both socially and environmentally sustainable”.

Mr Grimes also noted that, with an estimated one in five people in Ireland expected to be aged over 65 by 2030, the council is eager to “ensure that energy efficiency and universal design principles are incorporated at preliminary design stages”.

Welcoming the development, the chairman of the Comeragh municipal district Liam Brazil said that there were many more such buildings — including former garda stations — around the county that could be similarly acquired and redeveloped.

“It's a fright to have them lying idle amidst a housing crisis”, he said.

Mr Grimes said the council has been in discussions with the Office of Public Works in regard to several structures that could “potentially be adapted for housing”, with the Department of Housing having ”indicated its support” for such measures.