NEWAYGO COUNTY, Mich. — Peter and Annica Quackenbush own 20 Acres of land in Brooks Township, near Newaygo, and have been patiently waiting to see if they'll be able to open the West Michigan Burial Forest.
"Last minute we, we heard that it had been canceled for the day," said Peter. "So, yeah, obviously, very disappointing."
It would act as both a cemetery, and a nature preserve, taking out the common headstone for more natural burial markers, like stones or trees, and would only use decomposable materials for burial.
"We bought the land for this purpose, purpose, it would be possible to look for other land, I guess," said Peter. "But as you said, the money is tied up in the current land, and so we're just kind of waiting on the process to move through."
However, the dream came to pause after Brooks Township passed an ordinance banning new cemeteries within the township. Now, the couple is fighting the township in court. Just before oral arguments were to be heard in Newaygo County Circuity Court, the judge recused himself from the case.
Attorney Katrin Marquez said they're not sure what the reason was for the recusal.
"The longer that the lawsuit goes on, the longer that they are in a state of limbo, and they deserve their day in court," said Katrin. "However, if the judge is concerned that they can't be impartial, he absolutely made the right decision in recusing we would have just preferred for it to have been earlier, so less time would have been wasted."
The couple and their attorneys are waiting for the court to select a new judge for the case, which could take weeks, or even months.
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