BOONE, Iowa—The Boone City Council has voted to deny recommendations from the City’s Plan and Zoning Commission and not approve site plans for building additions to the Schroeder-Stark-Welin Funeral Home at 609 7th Street and the Schroeder-Reimers Memorial Chapel at 1006 6th Street.  Both building additions would have housed a crematorium.

The Plan and Zoning recommendations were made following presentations at a meeting on April 9th at the City Hall.  The recommendations identified that both locations are in areas currently zoned C-2, and were considered permitted uses for those areas.

Sean Conlin lives on the south side of 7th Street, across from the Schroeder-Stark-Welin Funeral Home and presented arguments to the plan and zoning commission.  He also presented his case to the city council.  Council members also heard from Tom Krowl of Cremation Systems, the company that would install the crematory and provide training on the use of the system.  Krowl responded to issues raised about the impact the crematories would have on the community and the immediate neighborhood.

A motion to table the site plan requests and consider amending the city’s zoning ordinance to specifically deal with cremations was defeated on a 3-to-4 vote with Council members, Eli Stein, Holly Stecker and David Byrd voting in favor and Council members Steven Ray, B.J. McGinn, Kevin Hicks and Greg Piklapp opposed.

Votes to approve the site plans were defeated 3-to-4 with Council members Ray, McGinn and Hicks in favor and Council members Stecker, Byrd, Stein and Piklapp opposed.  Each site plan recommendation was voted on separately.