A £2.2 million refurbishment of Perth Crematorium is expected to be approved next week, just days after councillors passed controversial plans for a new relief road on nearby woodland.
Members of Perth and Kinross Council’s environmental committee will be asked to set the ball rolling on an upgrade which the local authority says will safeguard the crematorium’s future.
It will be the biggest investment since the facility opened its doors in 1962 and will be an opportunity to revise the layout of the building to improve access for mourners.
A meeting place will also be created to give visitors somewhere private to speak with staff confidentially. The work will also include an overhaul of the building’s electrics and central heating system, as well as new mercury abatement technology to help meet industry standards.
Earlier this week, the development management committee approved highly controversial plans to build a road through land on the edge of the crematorium as part of a wider project.
Funeral director Andrew Pennycook said that hundreds of people’s ashes had been scattered at this site over the decades and told councillors who voted in favour of the scheme they should “hang their heads in shame”.
If approved, refurbishment of the Crieff Road crematorium could go ahead in summer 2017. Though the chapel will be closed off during some of the work, cremations will continue to be held.
“Funeral directors are already aware of this and are working with the council to take forward the potential solutions already identified,” a spokeswoman said.
In a previous report, the council’s development quality manager Nick Brian said that work on the new road could “tie in” with the refurbishment to minimise disruption.
Environment convener Alan Grant said yesterday: “As the only crematorium in Perth and Kinross, it is important to ensure that the proposed refurbishment can be carried out in a way which allows cremations to continue during the upgrade.
“By working together with funeral directors, the refurbishments can take place with the minimum of disruption and inconvenience.”
Mr Grant said the investment would secure the crematorium for future generations.