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Planning Board weighs home-burial allowances and legal limits
Summary
At its March 19, 2025 meeting the Planning Board reviewed New York State burial-permit requirements and local constraints for home burials, discussed pros (cost savings, emotional reasons) and cons (long-term burdens, property impacts), and agreed to continue the topic on April 16, 2025.
At its March 19, 2025 meeting the Planning Board discussed whether to permit home burials within the town and agreed to take up the item again at its April 16, 2025 meeting.
Board members reviewed the legal steps families must take before pursuing a home burial. The minutes quote state guidance: "a burial permit is required to bury a body and can be obtained from the Registrar of Vital Statistics in the registration district where death occurred." Members also noted that families must confirm local zoning permissions and consult the county health department. The minutes record spatial and size constraints cited by the board: land selected "cannot be closer than 1650 feet to a dwelling" and a private or family cemetery "can not be greater than 3 acres."
The board recorded potential advantages and drawbacks. Pros listed in the minutes included cost savings for families and meeting an emotional need for the deceased’s relatives. Cons recorded included that the emotional need may be short term compared with a permanent site, that private burials could create long-term burdens for successors, and that such burials could "devalue" the property or nearby properties and the community.
Attendees were listed in the minutes as Brad Taber, Sherry Habbershaw and Amanda Gulini; Dom Spaccio was absent. The board did not adopt a policy at this meeting and directed that the topic return for more detailed discussion and potential local zoning review at the April 16 meeting.
