Springfield funeral business to invest over $2M into new facility

Credit: Bill Lackey

Credit: Bill Lackey

A longtime funeral home and crematory in Springfield is investing more than $2 million into its property on North Limestone Street as it looks to expand and update services that are in demand.

Littleton and Rue started construction in November ona 5,500 square-foot building that will allow for memorial gatherings, funeral services and cremations. The local family-owned business held a dedication to its new project on Tuesday. RCS Construction, which has offices in Celina, Tipp City and Springfield, was hired for the project.

The new structure, which will be called The Landing at Littleton and Rue, will be located near the funeral businesses’ main building. It will have large windows and an indoor fireplace, as well as an outdoor patio and a front lawn where families can gather.

It is expected to be completed by October 2022.

“A lot of times after services, wherever they are at, people are looking for a moderate space they can get together and maybe have a meal or just have an exchange of time where they can be together. This space will do that,” said Rob Rue, co-owner of the funeral business.

In addition to providing a gathering space for grieving families, services can also be held both outside and inside the new building. The Landing will feature a new human crematorium, as the current one will be decommissioned, as well as another crematorium for pets.

The business has had a human crematorium since the 1980s, and the demand for those services have continued to increase, Rue said. There has also been growing demand for pet cremation services, he said.

The new space will allow the business to host different kinds of services, provide gatherings and celebration of life services as well as allow them to cater to a diverse community, Rue said.

He added that they have been looking at ways to provide more services for sometime and eventually had the equity to invest into a project of this kind. They decided to create a new facility that would be able to serve many functions, instead of just limiting it to a gathering space. The more than $2 million project will also create more parking.

The business has been in the community for 135 years. It started as the Littleton Funeral Home in 1886 before moving to its current location on North Limestone Street in the early 1930s.

Rue co-owns the business with Rob Kampman, and they currently have eight full-time employees and 15 part-timers.

About the Author