The student dormitory in Ilulissat will become a 24-hour residential facility for children in foster care. It is not clear whether the student dormitory in Uummannaq can take over.
On Friday, September 25, the municipal council of Avannaata Kommunia decided that the former student dormitory building in Ilulissat will be converted into a municipal residential care facility with ten beds for children and young people between the ages of 10 and 18. The decision was made by the parties supporting Mayor Lars Erik Gabrielsen (S).
This means that elementary school students from the villages around Ilulissat will have to attend school and live in a student dormitory in Uummannaq going forward.
The municipality justifies the change by citing a decline in the number of students. The student residence in Ilulissat has 21 beds, but according to the municipality’s projections, no more than 10 students per year from the villages around Ilulissat will need a bed.
In six years’ time
When students gather in Uummannaq, the municipality expects between 9 and 21 students per year. The student dormitory has 21 beds and, according to projections, will be fully occupied during the 2032–2033 school year. The administration itself notes that the building is old and in need of renovation, including the heating system. It recommended examining capacity, renovation costs, and staffing before a decision was made. The minutes do not indicate that this was done.
The administration estimates that the municipality will save approximately 3 million kroner a year by operating the residential facility itself. Currently, for example, the municipality pays 1.3 million kroner a month for ten children placed in facilities elsewhere along the coast.
The opposition would rather use the building to house people with disabilities. All nine spots in the shared housing community in Ilulissat are filled; five people are waiting for a spot; and the residents share a bathroom and shower with the staff. There is a four-year wait for a spot in a new shared housing community.
