Surrey residents wary of crematorium development plans in Tynehead neighbourhood

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.

Rob Terris, a resident of Tynehead for 42 years, says he’s concerned about 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.”

The developer behind the project is set to hold a public meeting to share information and hear from the community Tuesday evening.

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