Hastings Crematorium Plans

It is not often the chapel and cemetery team get to hang out with their visitors; normally the staff are busy working while their visitors are often grief-stricken.

So Saturday’s open day (July 4) was “a fantastic opportunity to interact with people in a way we can’t usually,” said facility manager Garry Bowles.

The day was all about showing the public the plans for the new chapel and crematorium, being rebuilt as the chapel is earthquake-prone and the crematorium does not meet modern-day health and safety standards.

Mr Bowles said about 200 people visited the facility. There was plenty of interest in the new plans, the existing cremator, and in the “science of grave digging”.

More than 60 signed the visitors’ book and those who left comments were overwhelmingly positive.

Support for the plans was across the board. “I love the new plans. [It] was a very interesting tour and I learnt a lot,” said one, while another thought the plans would see “everything work perfectly”.

Council this year approved the $1.2 million rebuild of the chapel and crematorium. The construction is expected to be completed by autumn 2016.

ENDS

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