Mortuary and crematorium embroiled in controversy

Most residents haven't noticed crematorium has been operating

By Jana Seshadri

The newly installed crematorium in the Wyant and Smith Mortuary has been the center of a year-long protest among Sunnyvale residents, one of the main issues of the election debate, and the reason for a lawsuit against the city.

The Sunnyvale City Council approved the addition of the crematorium to the Wyant and Smith Funeral Home on Dec. 12, 2000, and it began operation on Oct. 2. However, the issue is still the center of controversy.

First established in 1932, the Wyant and Smith Funeral Home, a family-owned business in the Heritage neighborhood, moved to its current location at 174 N. Sunnyvale Ave. in 1952. It is situated in a residential area, very close to downtown Sunnyvale and the railroad tracks. Some residents strongly oppose the addition of a crematorium.

"I certainly don't think that it is right that it is here," said Sheila Hale, a real estate broker who has lived behind the mortuary for 13 years. Hale has been renting the home at 1 Oak Court, at the intersection of Oak Court and California Avenue. "I was opposed to it in the first place," Hale said.

Hale said that her opposition stemmed from talks in her neighborhood about the noise and ash that would emanate from the crematorium and just simply the fact that "bodies are being burned there."

When asked about the noise now, Hale said the noise from the traffic at that intersection is loud enough that it would probably block off any other sounds in the area.

As far as emissions of ashes or gases are concerned, there are none, according to Dick Smith, the owner of the mortuary.

"There is no sound or ash or anything coming out," Smith said. "If anything, only heat flames might emanate from the small chimney," said Smith, adding that he has personally not received a single complaint from anyone ever since the whole process started with the city, more than a year ago.

Some residents did not know that the crematorium had even started functioning.

"I had no idea," said Ling Ling Yuan, who lives across the street from the mortuary at 197B N. Sunnyvale Ave. "There's no noise, no nothing."

Other residents, like Barbara Iverson, who also lives in the immediate neighborhood, don't seem to care.

"It doesn't bother me," said Iverson, who lives at 185 N. Sunnyvale Ave.

Some residents were bothered by the fact that not all of them were informed ahead of time. According to regulations, residents within 300 feet of the mortuary should have been informed by the city of the hearing on the permit. Even though the city said notices were sent out before the approval last December, according to the association's co-president, Michael Gulasch, all the residents of the Heritage District Neighborhood Association were not given proper notice.

Tom Dwyer, a software engineer working for Sun Microsystems, who is a member of the neighborhood association, has taken action against the city because of the crematorium. Dwyer, who ran for city council, said 45 percent of the immediate neighbors were not notified. He has filed a lawsuit against the city of Sunnyvale for its approval of the crematorium, and that hearing is set for the second week in November.

Smith said that even though he was not approached personally regarding this issue, notices about the crematorium were posted everywhere. The city's website and the newspapers carried information about the crematorium as well.

The cremation unit, which is situated inside the mortuary, is not visible from outside. The unit, which resembles an industrial-size pizza oven, is a self-contained burn facility, which has to be operated at a very high temperature. Smith said he had to get sound test licenses and permits from the state of California, the Public Safety Department, the State Board of Funeral Directors and the Bay Area Air Control Management, as well as others. Also required only by the state of California is a monitor for heat and pollution, which Smith has displayed just outside the unit.

"Only I am authorized to operate this unit," Smith said. "I have to make sure the temperature gets up to 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit, and that usually takes about an hour."

Since 90 to 95 percent of the human body is made up of water, the high temperature burns the body down completely. The only remains are bone fragments, which are collected very carefully in a jar, and then powdered, in an Osterizer-type blending machine. These ashes are then turned over to the family of the deceased.

Smith said about half of his clients want their deceased to be cremated. He has been cremating bodies since 1952 and had 90 cremations last year. But they were being sent to different facilities, such as one in Fremont that is 17 miles away. The commute, traffic and extra expenses were just minor things that bothered Smith.

"The main thing that concerned me was--how do I know that my client was getting the right ashes back, the right remains--the ashes of his or her loved one?" Smith asked.

Smith said he offers a very personalized service to his clients, waiting on every family himself. Having recently completed his ninth cremation in his own facility, Smith said he is very sensitive about his clients and their feelings toward their loved ones.

Smith said despite how he feels about his clients, adding a crematorium to his funeral home business was not an easy decision. The total cost of the addition, including the permits, was $180,000. It costs about $1,250 for a complete service, which includes transporting the body, its refrigeration and embalming, the funeral service and cremation. A cremation alone would cost about $225.

"I'll never come out ahead on this deal," Smith said.

The financial aspect of the business notwithstanding, Smith said he felt he had to do this for the people. He said in the past, people belonging to certain Christian denominations went only to certain places for funeral services, but now all that has changed. Churches have since relaxed their rules about funerals. The ethnic makeup of the city has also changed dramatically and will continue to attract people of all ethnic and religious backgrounds. Smith said he ought to be able to cater to each of his clients and deliver to them the funeral of their choice, no matter where they are from originally.

"The people of Sunnyvale have been very good to me," Smith said.

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