Asylum seekers will begin moving into the Thornton Hall site in Dublin later this month, the Justice Minister has confirmed.
The site in North County Dublin, which was once earmarked as the location of a new super prison, is set to accommodate up to 1,000 international protection applicants when complete.
The tented accommodation at the site will be opened a phased basis for single adult men who are seeking international protection.
Work at the site began back in August with initial plans to house people during September.
Following screening works, however, it was necessary to apply for a licence to undertake archaeological test examinations.
Gardaí at the Thornton Hall site as contractors begin preparations to convert the area into accommodation for international protection applicants, 13-8-24. Image: Leah Farrell / © RollingNews.ieThis morning, Justice Minister Helen McEntee told Newstalk the site is now ready.
"My understanding is that we will have the first group of international protection applicants moved in in October," she said.
"There's been a huge amount of work done - not just on the site but also engaging locally to make sure that any of the supports or services that are needed are there.
"This is going to be done on a phased basis - Minister [Roderic] O'Gorman has assured me and indeed my colleagues that this will be done in consultation with the support of - we hope - the community.
"These are vulnerable people and obviously we want to make sure that they get their answer as quickly as possible - whether they're entitled to stay here or not - and if they don't have a right to be here that obviously they'd be sent home," she added.
Minister McEntee added that speeding up asylum seeker processing for certain countries has seen the number of people coming from these countries drop.
The Department of Integration has said the goal of Thornton Hall is to deliver "robust high-performance tents on site that can accommodate up to 1,000 people."
The site is being developed by a private company called IEMS who are contracted by the Department of Integration.
Reporting by Barry Whyte
