No new funeral home in Garden Grove– for now

Chris Haire/OC Register

Residents in Garden Grove breathed a collective sigh of relief after the Garden Grove Planning Commission unanimously shot down a proposed funeral home amid widespread community fears that a crematorium would cause health problems.

The Garden Grove Planning Commission rejected the proposal to build a funeral home near residents in Garden Grove. In this photo from June 2, residents packed the community center to voice their objections. (Photo: Courtesy David Le)

But the fight may not be over for the neighborhood, which includes portions of Garden Grove, Orange and Santa Ana: The owner of the proposed Heaven’s Gate Funeral Home, which would be on Garden Grove Boulevard, is weighing whether to appeal the permit denial to the City Council.

He has several weeks to appeal.

“There was a lot of community pressure against me,” said Tuan Duc Nguyen, owner of the proposed funeral home. “It isn’t fair. Afterward, I was emotional and cried. I worked so hard for this.”

But Nguyen’s idea for a funeral home – which would have a showroom for caskets and urns, host wakes and cremate bodies in an approximately 19,500-square-foot office building – angered some residents.

The facility would sit within 300 feet of several houses. There is not enough evidence, residents say, to prove that fumes released when bodies are burned are not harmful.

Heaven’s Gate applied for a permit from the South Coast Air Quality Management District in February. An inspection would determine whether the faculty posed a risk of cancer or other health problems.

“I don’t want my community to be guinea pigs for something that could be harmful,” said Planning Commissioner Linda Zamora. “I understand how (Nguyen) could think it’s unfair, but I’m concerned about the health of our population.”

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