Gympie senior Maureen Perry backs controversial funeral parlour

The backlash against a proposed funeral parlour close to KFC and a major Gympie nursing home is nothing more than railing against change according to one Gympie senior

old Brodies site and Gympie Funerals at Monkland

One of Gympie’s leading seniors says the uproar around a controversial planned funeral parlour near KFC is no different to that which engulfed Gympie Funerals at Monkland when it was built near a school decades ago.

Maureen Perry, a longtime resident of the city and secretary of the Gympie Pensioners and Superannuants League, said there was often outrage “when anything new comes”.

“Look at the trouble they had when they first wanted to build the one at Monkland,” Mrs Perry said.

“They didn’t want it there, but you can’t even see it now.

“Nobody wants change.”

The site of the proposed funeral parlour sits next to a Gympie aged care centre, a fact which has led to calls the planned location is inappropriate.

The choice to place the new proposed parlour on Channon Street opposite KFC and beside the Gympie Views aged care centre, has drawn some harsh criticism.

But Mrs Perry said these developments “have to go somewhere” and funeral parlours were often built in places like that across Brisbane.

She said it would be no different to building a small church next to the aged care centre.

Mrs Perry said people were against the funeral parlour now located at Monkland.

“They’ll only be having small services,” she said.

“They won’t be doing anything drastic there.”

Plans for the funeral parlour reveal it will seat no more than 40 guests.

Mrs Perry said consideration also needed to be given to the potential court costs Gympie Regional Council could incur if the proposal was refused despite otherwise being acceptable under the region’s planning scheme.

“If they did say no … it would cost a lost of money to go through court,” she said.

Originally published as Gympie senior Maureen Perry backs controversial funeral parlour