By Stephen Appezzato
MIDDLETOWN – Concerned residents gathered at town hall Feb. 5 as the planning board began hearing Fair View Cemetery’s latest application to construct a crematorium. The next hearing will occur April 3.
According to representatives of Fair View, the facility is needed due to the increasing popularity of cremations and the finite space on the cemetery’s main grounds along Route 35. Many residents argue otherwise, raising concerns about air quality from the cremation process and the facility’s visibility.
The area in question for the 1,500-square-foot crematorium is an undeveloped triangular plot bordering Oak Hill Road, Normandy Road and the NJ Transit train tracks that separate it from Fair View’s main grounds.
According to professional engineer and planner James Kennedy, who presented Fair View’s proposed site plan, Fair View has owned the 21-acre triangular plot since the 1930s. The land was left alone until last year when the cemetery received approval to construct a small graveyard on the site.
“It’s out of necessity that they are expanding onto this Oak Hill tract,” Kennedy said, noting little space is left on Fair View’s main grounds.
According to attorney John Giunco, who represented Fair View during the hearing, 65% of burials at Fair View are now cremations. Of the 25 crematoriums in New Jersey, the closest to this area is located in Neptune.
“There’s a demand and a need to meet that preference,” Giunco said.
Many residents who live near the cemetery argue otherwise, voicing concerns over air pollution and the proposed crematorium’s proximity to busy places such as Poricy Park, Fairview Soccer Fields, neighborhoods and even a school bus stop.
“Can a body be burned – cremated – off-site and then have the remains buried on this site?” resident Julian Eyles asked.
“Provided that it’s at a licensed facility, the answer is yes,” Giunco said.
“There is no demand for a crematorium on this site. A body can be burned off-site and then buried anywhere the family chooses. So the demand, I would put to this board and the members here, is actually a revenue motive for the owners of the cemetery rather than a justifiable demand for having a crematorium on-site,” Eyles said.
According to its Guidestar profile, Fair View Cemetery has been a nonprofit since 1934.
Sharon Zeveney, another neighbor, asked if the owners knew of the school bus stop located near the entrance to the facility’s driveway when they designed the crematorium. The entrance for the driveway that leads to the 19.8-foot building is proposed for a lot directly across from the Colts Glen neighborhood along Oak Hill Road.
“Mr. Kennedy explained a typical engineering design would create a driveway, or a street, immediately across the street from the existing road,” Giunco responded. “I’ve understood from the board members and I’ll probably hear it again from the public that there is a desire to minimize the visual intrusiveness of the crematorium.”
“We’re willing to look at alternatives available to us,” he added.
A proposed bill (S4008) in the state legislature would prohibit crematories within 1,000 feet of a school, residential area or certain recreational areas. Although the bill is only in committee, planning board members noted Fair View’s application might not comply with the bill if it were to pass.
According to Giunco, the application complies with all conditional use requirements for a crematorium in a residential zone under Middletown’s current ordinances.
“Will the town require the crematorium to install continuous emission monitoring technology and make those reports publicly accessible?” Zeveney asked.
“I don’t know – but what I can tell you is that the equipment that is being proposed is new, current, state-of-the-art, and if you give us the opportunity to present the results, the testimony would probably satisfy you,” Giunco said, adding the machinery would fully comply with the state Department of Environmental Control’s air quality guidelines.
Ultimately, the planning board did not decide on the application; another hearing is scheduled for April 3. At that meeting, an engineer who helped design the crematory furnace is expected to testify on operational hours, air quality and more technical details.
The application was not Fair View’s first bid for a crematorium; in 2017, cemetery representatives applied to the township to construct one on its main grounds. The application received conditional planning board approval but was later denied by the zoning board. Fair View filed a legal complaint that same year. That case was tried in 2018, and a ruling was issued in 2023 upholding the zoning board’s decision.
Residents near Oak Hill Road organized against Fair View’s initial application. With the cemetery’s recent site plan proposal, residents reignited their opposition to the crematorium. The website stopfairview.com urges neighbors to join the movement, offering lawn signs, banners, flyers and informational material.
The article originally appeared in the February 13 – 19, 2025 print edition of The Two River Times.
