Shopkeepers in the Christchurch suburb of New Brighton are mortified by the arrival of a funeral parlour in their rundown shopping mall that they have been trying to revitalise for years, a newspaper reported on Thursday.
Roger Hunt of the local business association said the opening of the Starlight parlour in a former toy shop gave new meaning to the ”dead heart” of New Brighton.
”They are beside an empty butcher’s shop with a sign still on the window which says, ‘Get your red meat here,”’ he said.
Worried at the prospect of hearses parked at the mall, he said, ”We don’t think it is the best business to help revitalise the area.”
Funeral director David Tweddell told the paper that his business was a shop with some caskets used for discussing service arrangements with bereaved families and there would be no bodies or embalming on the site. – Sapa-DPA