Towne Lake Residents Fight Proposed Funeral Home, Crematorium

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Residents in Towne Lake are speaking out against a plan by a Cherokee County commissioner to build a funeral home with a crematorium near a busy intersection.

District 3 Commissioner Brian Poole plans to break ground in the coming weeks on the Poole Funeral Home at Towne Lake, which sits near the intersection of Eagle Drive and Rose Creek Drive.

Dozens of residents held two rallies on Thursday and another late Saturday morning to draw attention to their opposition. They’ve publicized their cause on the Heads Up Woodstock – Neighbors Against Poole Funeral Home and Crematory Facebook page.

They’ve also created a fund to raise money for possible legal counsel.

One resident, Tony Berwald, said he’s mainly concerned about the emission of potentially harmful chemicals into the atmosphere and the development’s proximity to homes, schools and churches.

He also said he felt that Poole, who is in his first term on the County Commission, should have been more transparents with residents about his plans to build and open the business.

“As a public servant, he really needed to be more upfront about what he was doing,” he added.

Poole, who currently works with Woodstock Funeral Home, said once the venture gets up and running, he and his wife will be majority owners in the business. The 12,000-square-foot facility will be a “state of the art” building that will offer the ”latest and greatest” in funeral planning and services for residents, he said.

Poole said adding a crematorium option is now a necessity, as the industry is seeing an increase in families choosing cremation over traditional burial of loved ones.

Poole said he started working on his plans last year and began looking for property in the southern end of the county. He inventoried property along Highway 92, but noted he felt the thoroughfare was “too dangerous.”

The current property, he added, is also perfectly suited for the funeral home, and falls under the appropriate zoning category.

Cherokee County Planning and Zoning Director Jeff Watkins said the property is split zoned, with general commercial on the front and neighborhood commercial on the back portion.

Funeral homes are permitted uses in both categories, Watkins stated.

Poole said the rumors floating around the community that he received a sweetheart deal and that his fellow commissioners rezoned the property for him are simply not true.

“I did everything right in the order of the law,” he said. “It’s turned into a political witch hunt now.”

The Georgia State Board of Funeral Services has administrative authority over funeral homes and crematories. However, current state and federal Clean Air policies do not regulate emissions from crematories, according to a 2012 report released by the Georgia Senate Crematoria Study Committee.

In its report, the committee encouraged the Georgia Environmental Protection Division to conduct further studies on the environmental impact on crematories, urged the mortuary business to “adhere to the highest standards for cremation operation and to monitor cremation emissions” and for the Board of Funeral Services to adopt standards for cremation and ensure thorough inspections of crematories.

Poole stated he’s trying to be a good neighbor to Towne Lake’s residents and stakeholders and reiterated that he has done nothing wrong. He also said it’s unfair for those in opposition to attack his fellow commissioners, as they also have done nothing illegal.

“We’re just trying to build something nice for the community,” he added.

Berwald stated he believed the majority of people are not hostile towards Poole himself, but do not like the idea of a crematory operating so close to their homes. He said he would be in support of the venture if it were relocated to another location not within a half-mile of schools, churches or homes.

“In my mind, this is not a ’Not In My Backyard’ issue,” he said.

He also said he’d like to see the county amend the zoning category on the property so a crematory would not be permitted on the site.

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Photo credit: Heads Up Woodstock – Neighbors Against Poole Funeral Home and Crematory’s Facebook page