WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The century-old Woodlawn Cemetery in West Palm Beach is known as one of the city’s most sacred resting places. But a proposal to revitalize it, complete with a controversial event space, has stirred up strong emotions and drawn pushback from Palm Beach County Commissioner Gregg Weiss and residents with deep ties to the grounds.
Weiss said his office has been flooded with concerns from locals.
“I never imagined when I was elected to county commission serving Palm Beach County and the citizens of West Palm Beach that I’d be doing a press conference in front of a cemetery,” said Weiss, standing outside Woodlawn, surrounded by a landscape now dominated by new developments and construction projects.
The commissioner believes the nonprofit behind the proposal, Friends of Woodlawn, moved too far into project planning without significant community outreach.
He’s particularly critical of the event space concept and new access points mentioned on the project’s website.
“Let these families rest at night and know that their relatives are going to rest in peace, it’s time to bury this idea right now,” Weiss urged.
Weiss is calling on West Palm Beach city leaders to take a formal stance against the plan.
“We need to put an end to it today by the city just saying, we’re not going to have events in this cemetery, we’re not going to allow an event venue to be built in this cemetery,” he said.
He stated he would like to see family members with loved ones buried at the cemetery to be consulted with future plans first and then the general public.
WATCH BELOW: Cemetery event space plan dropped after community backlash
‘When Are We Allowed to Say That’s Enough?’
Among the voices at Friday’s gathering was Alysson Moore, whose family rests at Woodlawn.
She questioned whether the sense of sacredness is being eroded by development.
“What is sacred, what is to be protected because to me as a native West Palm Beacher, it seems like every greenspace that is available or here is being absorbed or sublet to a nonprofit,” Moore said.
“When are we allowed to say that’s enough? Parks are for the public, that doesn’t mean a nonprofit, that doesn’t mean use it as you wish with no regard to the history of the place,” she added.
Also speaking was Pastor Gerald Kisner with Tabernacle Baptist Church, a congregation that has been in the West Palm Beach community for 133 years.
“I understand history, I have several members that are buried in this cemetery and it seems to me that they ought to have an input because it is a sacred situation,” said Kisner.
WATCH BELOW: Cemetery could become park used for entertainment
Nonprofit Walks Back Entertainment Plans — But Critics Remain
Last month, Friends of Woodlawn announced they would focus more on beautifying the cemetery and move away from entertainment plans after the idea faced resistance during a community outreach meeting.
“We regret the way that the news about this restoration project was shared,” said a representative. “We now recognize that this was a mistake, and we want to move forward with our community at the heart of this project."
But for some, the damage was already done. Weeks earlier, residents held their own meeting after feeling blindsided by the proposal.
“None of us want our family members to have people dancing on their graves,” said Joette Stambaugh Keen, who has a plot reserved alongside four generations of family. “It’s extremely meaningful. To me, honestly, it would be a desecration of sacred space.”
Keen said she only found out about the project when she saw pictures online.
WATCH BELOW: Residents against cemetery being used for entertainment
City Response: ‘No Formal Involvement at This Time’
When asked about the proposal, the city of West Palm Beach emphasized that nothing official has been filed.
“The city has no formal involvement with this concept at this time, and no complete application has been submitted for review,” the statement read.
The city said its role would be to ensure a “transparent public process” giving residents, stakeholders, and families connected to the cemetery a voice.
“At this stage, this remains a community conversation taking place outside of the city’s formal review process,” the statement concluded.
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