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A former guesthouse located close to the town centre has been demolished to make way for a new housing development. Armagh House, which used to stand on the main Park Road near McDonald’s, was knocked on Wednesday and a new building with six one-bed apartments will be erected in its place.

The prominent bungalow had been vacant for a number of years, much to the consternation of locals who considered it an eyesore on one of the main roads into Killarney. The redevelopment project is being managed by Clúid, a not-for-profit charity which provides affordable homes to people in need. It is believed that homeless people may be housed at the site, which is scheduled for completion in 2020.

The demolition of Armagh House comes just a couple of weeks after the council announced that another abandoned dwelling, at the entrance to Pinewood estate, was to be torn down for a similar development. With many locals in dire need of housing – especially one-and-two-bed accommodation - it’s good to see the local authorities finally taking action.

As reported in the Killarney Advertiser earlier this month, Kerry County Council currently has over 536 qualified applicants on its social housing waiting list for one bedroom accommodation. There are an additional 454 applicants on the list waiting for two bedroom housing.

There is a serious lack of suitable rental properties in Killarney with many locals finding it virtually impossible to rent in the town. Business is being affected by the crisis too. As documented in these pages, employers are struggling to attract staff to the town as prospective employees are unable to find appropriate accommodation.

New developments like the ones at Pinewood and Armagh House will address a small segment of the housing crisis but a lot more needs to be done in the coming weeks and months if Killarney is to come out of this quandary.