Up to sixty Ukrainian refugees are set to be housed at Gracedieu Manor by the end of April.
The news was confirmed this morning by Independent TD for Waterford, Matt Shanahan.
The 18th-century manor house, which is located on the Waterford-Tramore Road, most recently served as a temporary base for court sittings when Waterford Courthouse on Catherine Street was undergoing renovation.
Speaking to WLR News, Deputy Shanahan said it's important that Waterford does everything it can in terms of providing accommodation. Many refugees who have already arrived from Ukraine placed in sports halls in both Dungarvan and Carrickpheirish.
"It's hoped that up to sixty Ukrainian refugees will be in the centre [Gracedieu] - by the end of the month. They will have full turnkey facilities in there which is very welcome, and great for them. There is other work being done to be fair to the local authority, in terms of other centres around the city and county. Waterford is standing up and showing support for what is happening in Ukraine - for those who have had to leave everything behind in leaving their country."
The Independent TD paid tribute to John and Geraldine Kent of South East Construction for their role in making Gracedieu Manor available as Waterford Council and the Red Cross work to accommodate the most recent influx of those arriving from Ukraine.
"I want to pay special thanks to John and Geraldine Kent of South East Construction for making this accommodation available. We were initially working on a potentially different project for it. When it was thought that it could be offered for this purpose, I brought it to Minister Roderic O'Gorman - and in fairness to him, he expedited it and put pressure on his officials to get it done."
With Waterford currently in the midst of a housing crisis and no HAP accommodation available - Deputy Shanahan says while resources are overwhelmed, this remains a 'humane' response to a humanitarian crisis.
"I think this is a totally humane response. It is a crisis. It is putting tremendous pressure on our own local services and public services. Looking around, I think any accommodation that can be provided - the standard of accommodation that we would like and what is available - there is probably going to be some variance between that if we are going to manage to bring people in and assimilate them here for a period."
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