Temple set to build funeral chapel in Walsall
Plans to demolish 12 terraced houses and a shop to make way for a new chapel of rest at a Sikh temple are set to be approved.
Guru Nanak Gurdwara, in Caldmore, is looking to take down the properties next to the temple in West Bromwich Street, Walsall, and the adjacent Sandwell Street, replacing them with a four-storey chapel to support funeral services in the area.
Six new three-bedroom semi-detached homes will also be built on the site.
But the plans have met with strong opposition from neighbouring residents who have raised a string of concerns including an increase in traffic, noise, disturbance and the loss of shops and housing in the area.
Officers have recommended approval and the proposal is set to be discussed at Walsall Council’s planning committee meeting on Thursday. In the application, the temple said the chapel of rest was needed by its congregation who didn’t have the facilities to accommodate mourners.
It also said the existing houses, currently used as rental properties, were small and not energy efficient while the shop – previously a clothes store – had been vacant for a number of years. Agents M A Architectural Ltd said: “Within the community, a need has been identified for the provision of a suitable facility we have termed a chapel of rest, with associated ceremonial and worship facilities for the religious congregation.
“The local community is close and all of the usual family special occasions are celebrated by, not only the immediate family, but by the community at large.
“Funerals are a typical example of this community-wide spirit. When there is a death, a bereaved family often does not have the facility to cater for the numbers of mourners from the community. As a responsible guardian of the spiritual needs of the community, the Guru Nanak Sikh Temple requests consent to develop a part of the site for a suitably sized facility that will enable the community-wide respect to be shown.”
But the plans have attracted dozens of objections, including an 89-name petition and around 70 individual letters against the scheme. Residents believe the chapel will result in a huge increase in traffic, adding to the already “chaotic” parking problems, while others objected to the size.
