Chapter 530 - 526: More Solutions Than Problems

So, Mr. Young began, "Here’s the situation. Our group’s real estate development company has recently been in talks for a new project on Mount Lyra in the Sunstone District."

"Mount Lyra?" Section Chief Sutton was slightly surprised. "That’s quite remote. Chairman Young wants to develop a project on Mount Lyra? What could you possibly build out there?"

"We’re building a cemetery," Mr. Young said plainly.

That one sentence shocked everyone present except for Cecilia Sterling, including Director Sanders, who had been kept in the dark.

The officials, still stunned, couldn’t help but exchange glances. Director Marshall was the first to recover. "A cemetery? Whoa, now that’s an interesting idea. A great project!"

Section Chief Sutton looked at Deputy Chief Coleman and said, "Currently, Lorcain’s largest cemetery is at Kensill in Ashford. I believe it was built sometime in the ’70s. Our Sunstone District does have two municipal cemeteries and one martyrs’ cemetery, but they’re very small. The largest of them might even be expropriated for new development projects."

As a first-tier city, the competition for development among Lorcain’s major districts was fierce.

Due to its poor geographical location, the Sunstone District had always languished in the lower-middle tier among Lorcain’s districts. With a new leadership team in office, and the city having just approved the district’s redevelopment plan, they were all determined to produce results and add a significant achievement to their political records.

In regional development, the supporting infrastructure for each parcel of land was crucial, and a cemetery was an easily overlooked type of project.

Mr. Young’s words served as a wake-up call for the officials.

’A cemetery is a great idea.’ Although the Midpoint District was prosperous, its central location in Lorcain meant it was impossible to build a large-scale cemetery there.

The Sunstone District had Mount Lyra, a mountain range so vast you couldn’t see its end. Building a cemetery there was a stroke of genius.

Deputy Chief Coleman looked at Mr. Young and said, "Chairman Young, you’ve picked a good project. Are urban construction projects so scarce these days that someone’s actually decided to get into the cemetery business?"

"You have to understand, Lorcain’s major cemeteries are all public projects. The biggest obstacle to building a cemetery is acquiring the land. If a private individual wants to secure land for a cemetery... first, land in Lorcain is worth its weight in gold and there’s none available. Second, even if there were, where would you buy it?"

"Mount Lyra..." Deputy Chief Coleman frowned in thought. "Do the ownership and management rights for Mount Lyra fall under our district’s jurisdiction?"

He turned to look at the other two men.

Director Marshall pulled out his phone. "I’ll have to ask Director Lawson from the Land Administration Bureau about that."

But before he could send the message, Cecilia Sterling, who had been silent until now, spoke softly, "The ownership of Mount Lyra was permanently partitioned decades ago."

Her simple and clear statement left everyone stunned.

"Huh?" Director Marshall, phone in hand, blinked and asked again, completely baffled, "Wh-what does that mean?"

Cecilia Sterling repeated herself, word for word.

Only then did everyone’s eyes widen in unison.

’Partitioned? Could it be...?’

"Th-then this cemetery project... wh-who does it belong to?" Deputy Chief Coleman asked tentatively.

’Judging by what Cecilia Sterling just said, this project doesn’t belong to some major figure, does it?’

Cecilia Sterling looked at Mr. Young, asking with her eyes if she could reveal the truth. Mr. Young nodded, and only then did Cecilia say, "It’s mine."

Section Chief Sutton: "!"

Director Marshall: "!"

Deputy Chief Coleman: "!"

The three men’s expressions were identical—eyes slightly wide, mouths slightly agape. For a moment, they all lost control of their composure.

Amidst their shocked expressions, Cecilia Sterling continued, "I came into this plot of land on Mount Lyra by chance. My good friend’s maternal grandfather was the one who inherited it. His... surname is Gardner!"

’Gardner?’

’Elder Gardner?’

The men sucked in a sharp breath, then slowly exhaled. When they looked at Cecilia Sterling again, their expressions had visibly changed.

Whether their guess was correct or not, the origin of this land was clearly extraordinary, and the person who could acquire it was by no means simple either.

Deputy Chief Coleman turned to Mr. Young and said uncertainly, "Chairman Young, I mean no offense, but this is just too shocking. Is what Miss Sterling says true?"

Mr. Young gave a simple, honest smile and nodded. "Yes, this project is Cecilia’s. She’s entrusted my group to handle the construction. We’re determined to build Lorcain’s most luxurious, high-end cemetery, and we hope to receive the district’s support."

With Mr. Young’s confirmation, the officials clearly no longer dared to underestimate Cecilia Sterling.

Director Marshall and Section Chief Sutton fell completely silent. Only Deputy Chief Coleman, after a moment of thought, gave a slight nod and then asked, "Alright, tell me. What specific difficulties are you facing?"

Mr. Young looked at Cecilia Sterling, gesturing for her to explain.

Seeing this, Cecilia Sterling got straight to the point. "The cemetery site isn’t located along the main road at the edge of Mount Lyra. It’s about three to five kilometers further up a branch road. That road needs to be widened and rebuilt. I want to build the road."

The moment road construction was mentioned, Section Chief Sutton, who was from the Transportation Bureau, instinctively sat up straighter. He subconsciously added, "So you need a permit?"

Cecilia Sterling nodded.

Section Chief Sutton looked at Deputy Chief Coleman with a troubled expression, hesitated, and then said, "The development plan is divided into sectors for bidding. All the main branch roads at the foot of Mount Lyra are included in the sectors pending development. If we were to single out the road she just mentioned and issue a permit for it, I’m afraid it would be against regulations."

First, in a major district development, there’s no precedent for allocating funds to a single group or individual to build just one road.

Second, development rights for urban construction projects must be won through competitive bidding. Issuing a permit privately is absolutely out of the question.

That’s why Mr. Young had said from the beginning that "this permit would be difficult to get."

Deputy Chief Coleman nodded in understanding. He looked at Cecilia Sterling and said, "We are very optimistic about this cemetery project, but I’m afraid we can’t issue a separate permit for the road construction just for you. Why don’t you wait? Wait for the Sunstone District’s new urban development plan to kick off. Once a company wins the bid, the government can provide funding to rebuild that road. You’d even save money!"

His suggestion was quite reasonable, and most importantly, it complied with all regulations and procedures.

But Cecilia Sterling immediately rejected the idea. "That will take too long. Chief Coleman, you know the timeline for major district redevelopment. It can take five or six years at the shortest, and possibly more than a decade. My cemetery project has already started."

"This..." Deputy Chief Coleman, now in a difficult position, pressed his lips together.

"Sirs, I’m not asking you to open some convenient back door for me. I know I can’t do anything that breaks the law or regulations, and I have no desire to. But I hope you can help me think of another way to obtain the permit through legal channels."

Seeing his chance, Mr. Young quickly chimed in to support her. "There are always more solutions than problems, right? And don’t you gentlemen also agree that this project would be a huge competitive asset for the Sunstone District’s new development?"

He didn’t need to spell it out; Mr. Young’s meaning was perfectly clear.

Helping Cecilia meant helping the Sunstone District, and by extension, helping themselves. Once this high-end cemetery was built, the Sunstone District’s core competitiveness would absolutely skyrocket.

Everyone in the room understood this simple fact!