Waterloo funeral home proposes relocation to Kitchener with new crematorium
Posted Jun 29, 2026 08:40:35 AM.
Last Updated Jun 29, 2026 12:00:27 PM.
Providing funeral services for Waterloo since 1946, the Erb and Good Family Funeral Home has become a staple of the community.
After years of new high-rise residential buildings being built alongside the home’s historic structure, the land was officially slated to become one as well when the Erb and Good owners sold the space to developer VanMar Constructors Inc. in 2025.
The owners of the funeral home stated on the website following the announcement that the decision came in an attempt to “move forward with a new, single-level, custom-designed building that is better equipped and situated to meet the evolving needs of our community and our profession, today and into the future.”
One of the evolving needs is for cremation facilities in Canada, over three-quarters of Canadians are cremated according to the Cremation Association of North America, a number that has consistently risen since 2000, when it was just 48.0 per cent.
A crematorium is a facility made of two large furnaces known as retorts. These retorts cremate human bodies by heating them up to between 1400 and 1600 degrees Fahrenheit. This immense heat is then dispersed into the air via a tall chimney that dissipates the smoke above the range of passersby and local homes.
While crematoria are considered relatively small-scale emissions producers compared to large factories, they do produce roughly 6 per cent of Canada’s annual mercury emissions, according to the National Collaborating Centre for Environmental Health.
As a result of their environmental impact, crematoria require special by-law permissions to be built. These permissions mean Erb and Good’s new home and its planner must consult with Kitchener City Council to receive permission to build the crematorium as part of its new facility.
Multiple parties necessary for the site’s approval have already approved the plan prior to the council meeting. Some parties, including Metrolinx, have expressed hesitation with certain aspects of the proposal, thus requiring certain concessions and agreements concerning the dispersal of emissions and ground waste.
Kitchener City Council will table Erb and Good’s proposed crematorium at 2 p.m. on Monday, June 29.
People interested in participating in this meeting can register online using the delegation registration form or via email at delegation@kitchener.ca. The meeting live-stream and archived videos are available online.
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