Cemetery to receive overhaul

By Miriam Ostermann, Associate Editor

Strathmore town council recently approved the Strathmore Cemetery Master Plan that will restore and modernize the Strathmore Cemetery through upgrades and expansions.
Council allocated $15,000 in 2017 for the development of a Cemetery Master Plan. The plan is made up of three components: upgrades to the existing cemetery, an expansion to the west and an expansion to the east. All three phases will include column burial walls, traditional burial plots, cremation plots, gardens and reflection areas. Furthermore, the existing cemetery renovation will include a memorial wall, a wayfinding kiosk, a washroom and water access facilities for watering plants.
Administration brought the item forward to council during the Feb. 21 regular council meeting for approval in order to move ahead with engineering as was budgeted for this year. According to Strathmore’s Chief Administrative Officer James Thackray, the project aims to be financially viable.
“We want actual full cost recovery because we’re actually losing money,” Thackray said. “It’s a funny thing about local government. We’re in the business of services that lose a lot of money and we have to stop the hemorrhaging. This is one where we can at least provide a cost recovery model and at least break even or put some money away for the preservation and operation of the cemetery.”
Council was approached about the Cemetery Master Plan earlier this year during a Committee of the Whole meeting on Jan. 17. Administration asked council for input on the preliminary plan.
Back then, Councillor Bob Sobol was concerned about having a water source or watering plants, which is now included in the plan, and Councillor Jason Montgomery raised the notion of costs and maintenance.
“This looks nice, it looks very expensive,” said Montgomery on Feb. 21. “I appreciate Mel Tiede’s (director of corporate services) concern about raising revenues and I’m equally concerned with controlling costs. So I just want to make sure that things are going to work out well.”
Exp. Services developed the Cemetery Master Plan for the expansion of the cemetery to the east and west, and for upgrades to the current site, its beautification and to add density. Council was also informed changes will occur to the current fees. However, no information regarding fee changes is yet available.
Council adopted the final draft plan of the Strathmore Cemetery Master Plan on Feb. 21.