The Cherokee County Board of Commissioners Tuesday night voted to extend the moratorium on new crematory establishments roughly another month, until their second meeting on Oct. 20. The measure first enacted in July temporarily puts the brakes on rezoning property in several categories to construct such a business.
During an earlier work session, commissioners hashed over a draft proposal that would allow a crematorium in a general commercial zone only if it’s an accessory to an existing funeral home, keep exhaust a minimum of 1,320 feet away from residential, office and institutional property, and institute detailed filtering requirements.
The decision to postpone followed commissioner questions on issues related to access to such a business, filtering and distance. Staffers plan to do research and report back. Neighbors of a once-proposed crematorium in the Towne Lake area have loudly insisted that such a business would harm the environment, create health problems, decrease property values and have other negative impacts.
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