Today we bring you two articles about funeral homes and real estate that have been in the news lately.  We have written many times about zoning issues for funeral homes, crematories, and cemeteries, but today one of the articles actually tells of a funeral home that residents do not want to see demolished and the second article tells of a funeral home getting a zoning permit where it had been denied one before.

The first article and news video which you can access here, centers around the former Olinger Funeral Home and its Berkeley Park Funeral Chapel in Denver, Colorado.  The funeral home which was built on this property in 1960 is seen by residents as a historical architecture building with potential for landmark designation.  Olinger, a Service Corporation International owned business, closed the property for funeral services earlier this year and a townhouse redevelopment company has proposed the property for townhome development purposes.

The second article comes from an article in the Columbus, Ohio Dispatch and you can access that article here.  It deals with a new funeral home being developed in an old church location that was purchased by the Jerry Spears Funeral Home for a second location.  The purchase of the building and subsequent remodeling needed City Council approval to move ahead.  That approval was turned down in February, but on Monday, July 8, the council re-voted and passed the zoning amendment needed for the Spears family to proceed and locate a funeral business in what had been zoned a residential neighborhood.

Funeral Director Daily take:  It is always interesting when you combine the death care business, its perception among people, and the locations the businesses need to be viable with the differing thoughts of city councils.  I don’t think that you can conclude the outcome, to any great level of certainty, in any locale.  That outcome will depend on how well the funeral business is established in the community, their brand image, along with the perception of death care and cremation by those in the neighborhood.

My father always told me that when dealing with a land zoning issue, go talk to the neighbors that might be affected before it was public knowledge.  Having them hear about it second hand always put the thought in their mind that the developer was trying to hide something.  His idea was to “get them on your side” before they chose the other side.  Dad has been gone for over 40 years – but I think that advice still stands.

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