Surrey residents wary of crematorium development say public meeting cut short, concerns not heard

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      Tynehead residents gathered at a banquet hall on Tuesday night to air their concerns about a controversial funeral home and crematorium proposed in Surrey. Lauren Stallone has the details.

      By Lauren Stallone and Michael Williams

      Some Surrey residents are not happy with a proposal to build a crematorium and funeral hall in their neighbourhood.

      The suggested site on 168 Street near Tynehead Regional Park is in a green and otherwise residential area.

      Residents gathered at a banquet hall on Tuesday night in hopes of airing their concerns.

      Residents say they were under the impression that there would be an opportunity for their voices to be heard, but say it feels as though their opinions were pushed aside.

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      “I came here today in the hopes of the developer being transparent. That is what we were always told by city officials, city councilors, the mayor, that you know this is our first opportunity to have a public forum session where we can voice our concerns, provide feedback to the developer, which would then also make its way to the city,” Surrey resident Raj Khatar told CityNews.

      “That has not been done. And so we’re extremely disappointed by what’s happening today,” he added.

      One attendee who spoke with CityNews claimed that during the Q&A session, the property management group refused to answer the public’s questions, and ultimately decided to shut the hearing down an hour early.

      Locals say they are desperate to be heard as they’re worried about the negative impacts.

      “This is a parcel of land that was never designed to hold this type of facility, so it makes no sense,” Khatar stated.

      Residents say crematoriums emit a number of pollutants that can be harmful to the public, including the carcinogenic chemical compounds from burning clothes and caskets, and even radioactive particles. The proposed location of the crematorium will be close to several schools, which residents believe will put students at risk.

      “They are actually opposed to it as well, for that same reason, because of the health concerns they feel that children be exposed to the smoke or the fumes from the funeral,” resident Surj Sandher said.

      The project will also be built on a flood plain, directly backing onto the Serpentine River, raising concerns about worsening the risk of flooding in the area and affecting salmon spawning. City planners recommend the city not approve the project for those reasons.

      Rob Terris, a resident of Tynehead for 42 years, expands on the potential impact on the environment.

      “Everything that’s in a body can go into the air, even the radioactive material. Anything that’s in the body — your teeth and things like that — they have chemicals in it,” said Terris. “We’re worried about ash gathering in the Serpentine River.”

      He says the development is being proposed in an area that’s set to see some major changes over the next decade.

      “This area is going to really go big residential. So it’s going to affect a lot of people. It could be 30,000, 50,000, 60,000, 80,000 people here. Right now, there’s 2,700,” he explained.

      “We’re quite worried if this is going to happen; what’s going to happen for the community? It’s just going to destroy our community.”

      Surrey Coun. Linda Annis says that while there is a need for another facility like this in the city, it shouldn’t be placed in a residential area with limited road access.

      “And on a street that is very narrow with no sidewalks. As we know, when these funerals take place, and multiple funerals will take place at one time, traffic will be a huge impact. We need to be looking for a more appropriate space for this,” Annis told CityNews.

      Surrey city council has yet to decide if the development will move forward.

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