The Abridged version:
- Plans for a new crematorium near D.W. Babcock Elementary School in North Sacramento have faced steep opposition from parents, neighbors and school leaders.
- Experts contend that air quality effects — a top concern among parents and leaders — are not as problematic as people fear.
- Parents said they are also worried about the particular facility, after the business behind it received a violation notice from the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District.
Plans for a new crematorium near D.W. Babcock Elementary School in North Sacramento prompted pushback from parents and school district leaders who raised concerns about air quality.
Funeral industry experts say that the environmental effects are less than neighbors fear.
“I think it’s the perception more than anything,” said Valarie Rose, a professor of funeral service education at American River College.
Community members became aware of the proposed Sant Sagar Funeral Home crematorium in the spring, according to Sascha Vogt, a member of the Twin Rivers Unified School District board.
Since then, Vogt has spearheaded the official district-level objections. Parents, neighbors and educators, she said, have been just as vocally opposed. At a recent back-to-school night, Vogt said she shared an update on the crematorium’s halted progress and spoke with families about the issue.
“People are staying engaged,” she said.
Learning, health concerns
The crematorium would sit across the street and down the road from Babcock Elementary.
Because it is within 1,000 feet of a school, the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District notified the public and began reviewing the site around the start of the year.
A community meeting was held at Babcock on April 15. There, Vogt said attendees shared worries about emissions from the crematorium and potential effects on children’s health.
Since the spring, signs that read “No Crematorium” in multiple languages have speckled the streets and sidewalks surrounding the school.
Parents this week said they remain opposed to the project, for reasons including air quality effects, as well as not wanting young children learning and playing in the vicinity of the deceased.
“They’re kids, you know,” said Shenaya Hood, parent of a first grader and sixth grader at Babcock.
“I think it could mess with their learning,” she added. “I just don’t think it’s a good or a safe idea.”
Strict regulations
Rose, who has worked in the funeral industry since 1986 and taught classes for more than a decade, said crematoriums are often built in more industrial areas, away from residential spaces.
But, she said, that is less to do with concerning emissions and more because funeral home directors are hoping to avoid the contention and pushback.
“It’s such a big fight,” she said.
Sacramento County regulations on crematoriums are strict, Rose said.
There are fines for smoke beyond a certain opacity and the Sacramento metro air district sets standards for pollutants and toxic emissions. Allowable levels vary based on when companies apply for permits and an analysis of the facility’s specific site, according to Emily Allshouse, a spokesperson for the district.
Construction on pause
Part of the reason parents say they are so concerned, though, is because Sant Sagar Funeral Home has already violated protocol.
The Sacramento metro air district issued the violation July 21, in response to the funeral home installing equipment before receiving an official permit.
Allshouse said in a statement the district is working with the business to resolve the violation and that any further building has stopped for now.
A representative for Sant Sagar who answered a phone call to the business confirmed that construction has paused.
An evaluation under the California Environmental Quality Act is underway and expected to finish later this fall, Allshouse said.
‘Here isn’t right’
Members of the Twin Rivers Unified school board, including Vogt, said their unease went beyond whether the crematorium’s emissions stay within permitted thresholds.
“The broader concern is whether it is appropriate to introduce a new emissions source immediately adjacent to an elementary school and park in an area already impacted by nearby freeway traffic, automotive uses, commercial activity, and other existing air quality burdens,” trustees wrote in an official opposition letter in April.
The school, open for decades, is hemmed in between multiple car dealers and auto repair shops, a stone’s throw from Capital City Freeway.
Babcock in recent years has already struggled with low enrollment and faced fights to keep the campus open, Vogt said. She and other trustees said they worry the addition of a crematorium nearby will exacerbate the issue.
“It really is the hub of that community,” Vogt said. “The neighborhood really deserves a school.”
Vogt said she has heard questions about where should the facility go instead.
“I don’t know,” she responded. “But here isn’t right.”
