Towne Lake Residents Continue Push Against Funeral Home

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Scores of Towne Lake residents packed into Cherokee Hall Tuesday evening to speak their minds about a proposal from a Cherokee County Commissioner to build a funeral home near a busy intersection.

Those residents took their concerns to the Board of Commissioner’s meeting, which was held at the County Administration Building in Canton. Men and women, many of which wore red, clutched signs with the word “NO” written on them as they listened to four residents blast the venture introduced by District 3 Commissioner Brian Poole.

Poole is seeking to build a funeral home at the intersection of Eagle Drive and Rose Creek Drive. He initially had plans to include a crematory as part of the business component, but has since decided he will relocate that component to another location.

James Kinports, who lives in Towne Lake, started his comments by reading the county’s mission statement, and implored commissioners to live up to that statement by protecting residents’ right to breathe clean air.

He also said when the news came out the proposal, Kinports told Poole “it became apparent that you were not being transparent with the residents in this community.”

Longtime educator Cindy Crews said she was speaking for the thousands of Towne Lake children “who depend on moms and educators like me to speak on their behalf.” Crews told the commissioners and the audience that research has shown that having a funeral home a “stone’s throw” away from one’s home is an automatic negative when it comes to property values.

She also stated no amount of research will convince her that crematories are not harmful to adjacent communities.

Those closing remarks received thunderous applause from the audience, which filled the seats.

Dr. Britton Crigler, an obstetrician and gynecologist, made his comments from a health perspective.

Dr. Crigler said liquid mercury is found in roughly half of all dental amalgams and since the Food and Drug Administration and American Dental Association has ruled them to be safe and affordable, residents should not expect to see them phased out anytime soon.

During the cremation process, Crigler stipulates this mercury is vaporized and thus emitted into the air.

While he can tell his patients to avoid eating fish during pregnancy, he told the audience that he can’t tell them to stop breathing to avoid vaporized mercury dispersed into the air during the cremation process.

Fellow resident Tony Berwald reiterated the community does not want to see these establishments near schools, day cares, churches or residences.

He also said there’s no assurance from Poole that a crematory component would not be added to the funeral home aspect of the business in the future.

Finally, the location of the funeral home “seems to exploit” the adjacent senior population who would be housed next to the funeral home.

Berwald added he and other residents are still willing to hold a town hall meeting with Poole to discuss the proposal.

While Poole did not address the audience, Commissioner Scott Gordon, who represents the area where the funeral home would be located, read a statement that addressed this development and a senior living facility under construction in the master planned community.

Gordon told the audience that Poole’s actions throughout the process were legal, and commissioners did not approve the funeral home or the senior living facility under construction along Towne Lake Parkway near Rose Creek Drive since they were both legally permitted uses.

He also said the County Commission does not approve building permits or site development plans, and are not notified when county staff receive those applications. The proposed location for the funeral home is split-zoned, with general commercial on the front and neighborhood commercial on the back portion. Funeral homes are permitted uses in both categories.

Gordon also reminded residents that while funeral homes and crematories are regulated by the Georgia State Board of Funeral Services, the zoning that allows for the use of funeral homes and crematories was implemented long before he and his four peers took office.

“In summary, I know this may come as a disappointment to many, but both of these projects are within their rights under the current zoning use classifications to exist on their respective sites and meet all requirements for site and building permits,” Gordon said. “There is no authority given to me (or any of the commissioners) by the state or by ordinance that would legally allow us to intervene. As there are no compliance issues, it would also be inappropriate for us to do so.”

Gordon also called on the county to consider reviewing permissible uses in current zoning classifications so a future discussion can be held on what changes, if any, could be made ”based on what we have learned from these two cases and as well as similar ones in other districts.”

Commission Chairman Buzz Ahrens agreed with that, and told residents that, if they choose, they could blame him since he’s the longest serving commissioner on the board.

Aside from three rounds of applause following the speeches of three of the four residents, the crowd was quiet and respectful of the meeting procedures.

However, that changed following Ahrens’ comments. As the commission chair began to move onto another topic, the crowd expressed frustration towards the governing body as they exited the meeting hall.

The microphone was able to pick up residents shouting things such as, “You let one of your own cheat us,” “you have done nothing for us” and Woodstock and Towne Lake residents “deserve better.” Cherokee County marshals had to assist in encouraging residents to move outside to commissioners could continue the meeting.

The news of the proposed funeral home has propelled State Senator Brandon Beach to announce he will address distance requirements between homes and crematories during next year’s legislative session.

Current regulations stipulate crematories can operate 1,000 feet from a residential neighborhood, a distance Beach wants to expand.

The proposed legislation will require all crematories to operate a minimum distance of 2,000 feet from residential areas, and will also strike the term “stand-alone crematory” from the Georgia code.

In addition to drafting the legislation, Sen. Beach plans to hold a town hall meeting with both Ahrens and Gordon in the next few weeks to discuss this issue with area residents.

The date and location will be announced at a later date.

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Photo credit: HEADS UP Woodstock - Neighbors Against Poole Funeral Home and Crematory’s Facebook page