Camphill Communities apply to build houses and convert workhouse in Callan

Camphill Communities of Ireland are hoping to build a cluster of new houses in Callan – including some for social housing.
This planning application is on top of a previous application to convert the workhouse, which was received by Kilkenny County Council on the 2nd of June.
This was to convert the workhouse there into five apartments, and to add an extension to the building.
Now a further application has been lodged for the construction of a cluster of seven terraced/semi-detached/detached one-and-a-half storey housing units in the same area.
The application says access would be via the existing Workhouse Lane off the Clonmel Road, and the development would also include a shared laundry.
Patrick Lydon, under whose name the applications were lodged, has told KCLR News that four of those houses will be for social housing.
They’ll be mortgaged to the County Council for 30 years but the overall owner will be Camphill.
Mr Lydon says this has nothing whatsoever to do with the Ballytobin community there that, until recently was in the hands of Camphill but, because of a damning HIQA report was transferred to the HSE.
He’s also told KCLR that two more applications are being prepared for developments elsewhere in the Callan area.