The academic year will soon be upon us but future students are concerned about more than just their exams. The housing crisis has had a direct impact on the quality and value of accommodation offered to students in major cities around the country. One city has come up with an inventive way to solve the student accommodation crisis.
According to Galway Bay FM, a company in Galway is willing to tackle to the student accommodation crisis by offering a unique alternative - barges.
For those of you who aren't familiar, a barge is essentially a house boat docked in canals and harbours which can be found in overpopulated cities around Europe. The method is used as alternatives to land housing and has been a success in places such as Amsterdam. Here's what the new student accommodation is expected to look like:
Read about Bibby Stockholm's new charter in Bornholm, Denmark here https://t.co/Ab8nWSepKK pic.twitter.com/sCEX2bP5yB
— Bibby Maritime (@BibbyMaritime) June 14, 2017
Winter Property will talk with Bibby Maritime to discuss the possibility of bringing two barges into Galway Harbour to create enough accommodation for 400 students. The barges mentioned in the talks have been used in the past for corporate accommodation around the world and are more like ships than actual barges. The Managing Director of Winters Property, Enda McGuane told Galway Bay FM that we have to start thinking outside the box to accommodate students.
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You can find all your basic needs in a barge and it seems like the ideal place for a student looking to experience new things. Here are some of the basic amenities you can find on the barges:
- en-suite bedrooms
- restaurants
- recreation rooms
- reception
- laundry facilities.
The Bibby Stockholm barge has 222 en suite bedrooms, while the Bibby Bergen has 180 en-suite bedrooms with wifi and a courtyard. All costs, permits, and compliance will need to be fully explored before plans can go ahead but McGuane believes it may only take three weeks for the barge accommodation to become available.
