Who can you trust?

For 35 years, I enjoyed living in my neighborhood. I walked my son to his elementary school, played with him at the park's playground and relaxed on my front porch in my neighborhood with no worries for my family's health. I joined committees that support the idea that a safe and toxin-free environment should be guaranteed for all families in all neighborhoods, regardless of their income level or ethnicity. I believed these were the standards that our mayor, city council and our neighborhood businesses share. You trust them with your family's health, protection and economic security.

Like a thief in the night, without notification during a pandemic, our city and a funeral home with multiple sites slipped through building an unnecessary crematorium in our neighborhood. EPA will not regulate it. This funeral home outsources to a safe crematorium located in an industrial location with strong EPA regulation. The smallest amount of a toxin can be life threatening to some.

Funeral home is located in a residential area across from a playground, close to an elementary school with family homes around it. The school has 88% low-income students, 80% Hispanic and 72% English second language speakers. Why in this neighborhood?

The people we trusted dismissed our concerns, bent zoning rules, oversimplified/misrepresented information, all for financial gain of the funeral home affecting lives of struggling families wanting to continue toxin-free environment.

On March 10, despite a signed petition saying "no" from residents, the city council voted 9-0 and the neighborhood funeral home decided to push through their proposal. This sent a strong message that our voices and lives do not matter. Deal with health risks or move. When do 10 people and one business outweigh the health and safety of a neighborhood?

Darlene Castelvecchi

Elgin