A Direct Provision centre in Limerick with more than 60 asylum seekers and 12 staff has closed following a closure notice issued by the Reception and Integration Agency.
The department responsible for Direct Provision services asked Westbourne Holiday Hostel to "address essential maintenance" to ensure the health and safety of those resident in the centre last autumn, but the owners did not do so.
As a result, the Reception and Integration Agency terminated its contract to provide accommodation with the hostel.
RTÉ has learned that loans belonging to Westbourne Holiday Hostel Limited were acquired by NAMA in December 2010, and were later acquired by a subsidiary of Oaktree Capital Management, the same firm that served eviction notices on residents in the Strand Apartments in Limerick this year.
The 64 men who had been living at the centre will be moving to local facilities in Limerick, as well as to other centres across the country today.
A spokesperson at the Department of Justice said: "Every effort has been made to relocate residents within the Limerick area where possible.
"A number of people with particular circumstances have been prioritised for accommodation in the local area and in surrounding localities.
"The number of available places in the Limerick area is limited, however, all those who wish to move back to Limerick can apply for a transfer from their new centre and when appropriate accommodation is available an offer of transfer will be considered."
Anti-Austerity Alliance Councillor Cian Prendiville said: "Questions must be asked as to why Westbourne Holiday Hostel has apparently not been in a position to carry out the repairs requested by the Reception and Integration Agency since NAMA effectively handed over financial control of the centre to one of the world's richest investment funds."
Mr Prendiville said Minister for Finance Michael Noonan has a particular responsibility because "vulture funds" are stripping what Mr Noonan called the "carcasses" of the property crash, "and residents in his own constituency in Limerick are suffering the consequences".
