The county commissioners are discussing a switch from contracting with the William F. Young Funeral Home for morgue services to creating a new morgue that is operated as part of the county government.

The commissioners discussed the potential move at their Thursday meeting, said Commissioner Kevin Boozel.

Boozel said Coroner William F. Young III brought the matter up some time ago due to the county's growing population and deaths resulting from the opioid crisis.

“I think what we are realizing is that a county of this size has limited resources when using a private morgue,” Boozel said.

He said the move is in the preliminary stages, meaning that data will be gathered to analyze the fiscal feasibility of creating a county morgue.

Boozel said that the Sunnyview Complex, a new building near the county government center and a location outside of the downtown area had been bandied about over the years as potential locations for a county morgue.

He said many factors could point to the need for a county morgue.

“We know we have an aging population in Butler County, so we have to take that into account,” Boozel said.

Cost would be another consideration.

“There would be a return-on-investment conversation,” Boozel said. “We don't want to go so far in debt that we can't see a return.”

He said learning what counties of similar size do for morgue services plus observing past and projected death rates would figure into the commissioners' decision.

Young said he has been lobbying the commissioners for a county morgue for several years.

“A coroner's office doesn't mix well with a funeral home operation,” Young said.

He said people coming to the funeral home to get a death certificate or conduct other business with Young as coroner are faced with bereaved people attending viewings and funerals.

“We want our own place (for a morgue) that we don't have to rent,” Young said.

He said he is hoping to get a 12-by-12-foot cooler that would hold six or seven bodies, plus another smaller cooler for bodies that are in bad shape.

Exhaust fans, autopsy tables and other equipment would also be needed, Young said.

He said that since 2006, the county has been receiving $1 for every death certificate issued. This has resulted in about $200,000 that could be spent on coolers and equipment, Young said.

In addition to space for processing and storing bodies, Young would like to have a building with a few offices and garage space for hearses.

Young said that very few of Pennsylvania's 67 counties contract with a funeral home for morgue services.

Boozel noted that the project will be analyzed and carried out in a methodical manner.

“It's nothing we're looking to do today, tomorrow or next year,” Boozel said, “but you don't want to start building the day you need it either.”