A group of protestors has prevented modular homes from being installed in the north Westmeath village of Coole.
Last night, up to 60 local residents staged a protest outside the complex to prevent access for lorries, cranes and modular homes.
A spokesperson for the group said that at around 4am a convoy of more than 15 lorries carrying modular homes, along with four lorries containing equipment and two large cranes, were driven to the site.
Today, 20 members of the Coole Concerns group remain at the site and continue to block the entrance of a site in the village in a bid to prevent the installation of 18 large modular homes.
The site is located next to the Coole Court development where around 100 international protection applicants have been living since late last year.
Efforts to offload the modular homes were hampered by the protestors who had been camped at the site since earlier this week.
The Department of Integration has confirmed to RTÉ News it has no contract in place for the provision of modular homes in Coole.
It said the Department entered into a contract for 98 beds for International Protection Applicants (IPAs) at a property in Coole Court in October 2023 and that a two-year contract was signed with the provider.
"The Department has no contract in place for the provision of modular homes at this address".
The Department did receive an offer for additional capacity at the site through the tender process. This offer has been rejected, as it did not comply with planning regulations.
The provider has already been advised that this offer was refused.
Only the accommodation currently in use at this site is contracted to the Department, and no additional capacity is planned at this site.
"The Department is clear that no contract for modular units will be entered into at this site."
Local resident Sarah Jane Fagan said she was protesting to stop modular homes with no planning permission from coming into the community.
The convoy was parked outside her home, blocking the road into the village.
She said they had received "tip-offs" over the last two nights and were aware the units were en route to Coole.
"We're a very small community of about 200 people and we have an IPA centre that opened just before Christmas with 97 people. We've welcomed them, everybody’s settling and the children are at school.
"We’ve done our bit for our community and to be honest another 100 people in our community, it would be 200 IPAs and 200 Coole residents, it kind of doesn't balance out and we just want balance in our community," said Ms Fagan.
"We’ve done our part and we definitely don’t want modular homes like this looking like eyesores in our community," she added.
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Chairperson of the Coole Concerns Group Keith Thompson said he is exhausted after being up the last two nights waiting for the arrival of the convoy.
He does not think it is fair that people in Coole who embraced people in their community over Christmas could be faced with 100 or 200 more arriving.
"We thought it was very unfair at the time (when they arrived over Christmas) because we’re a very small village, but we’re not alone on this.
"It’s coming from Europe that you have to take a certain amount and we’ve embraced it. They’re helping out with the tidy towns and the kids are getting on well in school.
"We just want a happy village," said Mr Thompson.
Paddy Cheevers who also lives in Coole is concerned the developer is trying to double the population of the village overnight with no amenities to facilitate it.
"I’m absolutely delighted to see those lorries leave and everybody here is delighted.
"People power has won. This developer here trying to railroad us twice. We gave up the first time, we allowed families in and we’re very happy with everything.
"But we won’t leave here if there’s a whisper of those modular homes coming back here again," he said.
Last week, Westmeath County Council issued an enforcement notice to the owner of Coole Court, who also owns the adjacent site, after receiving a number of complaints relating to groundworks being undertaken to facilitate the installation of modular homes.
Gardaí are at the scene of the protest and said that any response "in relation to evolving events is in keeping with a community policing model and graduated policing response taking into account relevant legislation and public safety, primarily to ensure peace and public order is maintained, and no criminal offence is committed."
Minister for Enterprise Peter Burke visited Coole this afternoon and met with residents to hear their concerns, some of whom said they were angry at the lack of support or consultation on IPAs being moved into their village.
Mr Burke said the Government is "crystal clear on the issue".
"The Government has not facilitated this. There has been no contract with any developer in connection with international protection applicants."
He said there are already a number of International Protection Applicants living in Coole who have integrated into the community and residents have worked to ensure this.
"I think we have to be very careful how we communicate with the families in the community.
"What we’ve seen here is a developer who has acted on his own initiative that has no contract with the Department."
