Florissant Pet Cemetery Expansion Remains in a Bit of Limbo

The owner of faced another public hearing with the Florissant City Council Monday night, but not without a few more complications.

Rose Darnell presented her plan to expand her pet cemetery at No. 115 and No. 7 North Highway 67 and requested a special use permit to have the expansion in a R-4 zoning district, which is a residential zone.

The current cemetery sits in a R-4 district, but it’s a nonconforming use, which means that the cemetery existed before the zoning code became established.

Ward 1 Councilman Tim Lee said he felt reluctant to approve the special use permit for a residential area as it could set a precedent for others to present one in that area.

While Ward 8 Councilman Mark Schmidt disagreed that it would open a can of worms for others to come forward.

Previously, Darnell presented her expansion plans as a rezoning request to go from an R-4 to a B-3 as well as a request for a special use permit, but after realizing the land could remain an R-4, she decided to go this route.

City Attorney John Hessel explained that there’s no right or wrong way for Darnell to pursue her petition.

Hessel said that cemeteries, pet or human, can be a special permitted use in a B-3, but there’s nothing wrong with doing it in a R-4. He said it boils down to a “philosophical debate” about whether to have a special use permit in a residential zone or rezone the land and then have a special use permit.

He said if council agrees with Councilman Lee, then he would suggest that they reintroduce the previous legislation since she’s had a public hearing on the matter previously. 

The council had its first reading on the bill Monday night and will possibly have a final vote at its July 23 meeting.