Midlands Hospice plan stalled as HSE yet to respond to council queries

The future of the long-awaited hospice for the midlands hangs in the balance as the HSE has yet to respond to Offaly County Council's request for more information on its planning application lodged last April.

The multi-million euro proposal is for a 20-bed in-patient hospice with day care facilities administrative areas, 80 car parking spaces, 7, accessible parking bays and 30 covered bicycle spaces.

Road upgrades to a portion of Arden Lane to provide for a two-way carriageway and footpath, street lighting, and new utilities to extend to the site from a new junction with a distributor road, will also be developed.

The council issued a requst for additional details in May. The HSE has six months to respond.

The choice of Arden Lane has become controversial. In a submission, O'Neill Town Planning, on behalf of Offaly Hospice Foundation said the site is on inappropriately zoned lands with totally inadequate services and infrastructure, along with inadequate community connections or ancillary medical services, public transport and town centre facilities. Offal Hospice has indicated the Wellwood site on the Tullamore bypass as its preferred location.

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The submission drew sharp criticism from retired Palliative Medicine consultant Dr Michael Cushen who described the Offaly Hospice Foundation's move as a ''vexatious'' attempt to derail a vital healthcare project.

Dr Cushen said that he and his colleagues in the HSE, as well as other hospice groups in the Midlands were ''only interested in which would be the best site, which we agreed was Arden Lane.''

For now the plan remains in limbo, awaiting the HSE's response to its long list of planning queries.