The cremator would process as many as six human remains a day, six days a week. Residents who gathered Thursday at the Randallstown branch of the Baltimore County Public Library said they were frustrated by what they described as inadequate notice of the proposal. The deadline for public comments to the Maryland Department of the Environment is Oct. 20.

“I don’t want to be breathing in human remains. I just don’t,” said Desirée Gomez, who lives about two miles from the funeral home. Other attendees raised concerns about possible effects on health, quality of life and nearby property values, as well as the facility’s proximity to homes and an assisted-living facility.

The company sought the state permit for the crematory, which would be installed in an existing building on the funeral home’s property. At a public meeting last year, CEO Brandon M. Wylie said the business wanted to handle cremations on-site rather than outsource them. A company expert said emissions would be below regulatory limits and that the operation would produce no smoke or odor, according to coverage of that meeting.

Not all nearby residents oppose the project. Beatrice McNeil, whose home faces the building where the equipment would be installed, said she expects newer technology to prevent problems and welcomed the landscaping and fence added along the property line. She also said a crematorium could offer families a more affordable alternative to burial.

Some residents at Thursday’s gathering questioned whether their elected representatives had adequately addressed their concerns. Baltimore County Councilman Julian E. Jones Jr.’s spokesman said Jones was familiar with the issue and was looking into it, but had not taken a position. Jones promoted a Wylie-hosted community meeting about the proposal in a 2024 social-media post.

Wylie Funeral Homes and Jones did not provide further comment in response to questions about residents’ concerns. State regulators’ tentative determination does not end the public-comment process; residents can submit comments to MDE by Oct. 20.

The dispute comes amid heightened local attention to crematorium emissions. A separate facility operated by Vaughn Greene Funeral Home in Baltimore had two visible black-smoke releases earlier this year, according to prior reporting. That incident does not establish what emissions would occur at the proposed Randallstown facility, but residents cited it as a reason for scrutiny.

Campaign-finance records show Brandon Wylie, members of his family and affiliated companies contributed at least $66,000 to Maryland Democrats from 2020 onward, including $500 to Jones in April. The contributions are part of the public record; they do not establish that political donations influenced the permit process.