Construction will begin this summer to expand the Foothills Cemetery northwest of Black Diamond where only 10 full burial plots remain.
The expansion calls for 180 full-size plots, 63 in a Field of Honour for veterans, 72 niches for urns, space for memorials, a memorial look-out with four columbaria and a vehicle turnaround.
Work is expected to be complete by next spring.
“I’m excited that we’re moving ahead and we are going to get it done,” said Jackie Stickel, Black Diamond councillor and board member. “It’s just great to see things move ahead and to get things accomplished so that we have a great cemetery that the community can use.”
The Foothills Cemetery was established in 1976. Expansion discussions began in 2010, said Johanna Kortenschyl-Allan, the board’s staff liaison from the MD of Foothills.
“The plans for this have been developed through a number of years so we’re to a point now where we are ready to move ahead,” she said.
With so few full burial plots left, Kortenschyl-Allan said they are giving people the option to choose between a full burial or a cremain plot.
In the event the cemetery’s full burial plots are spoken for, the board will refer people to other cemeteries, she said.
The cemetery currently has 360 spots for cremains, 16 niches in a columbaria memorial structure, 60 Field of Honour plots, 32 children plots and 482 adult plots.
Kortenschyl-Allan said the number of people buried or interned each year varies, often depending on weather and rashes of illness or accidents.
Last year the number totaled 24, 13 of which were full burials and 11 cremains. In 2004 there were four full burials and one cremain.
The expansion will result in some minor changes, including the ability to purchase upright stones, Kortenschyl-Allan said.
“The existing cemetery is really quite traditional in nature - the monuments are flat,” she said. “Because the cemetery is on a hill it lends itself to a little bit of difficulty to have uprights. The expansion area is considerably less sloped.”
The cemetery board, which consists of councilors from Turner Valley, Black Diamond, the MD of Foothills, Turner Valley Legion and a member at large, applied for funding through the Canada 150 grant to cover half of the estimated $350,000 cost for the project.
If the grant isn’t approved, Kortenschyl-Allan said the cost will be covered entirely by cemetery reserves - an accumulation of requisitions from the Towns of Black Diamond and Turner Valley and the MD of Foothills, leaving very little in reserves.
Kortenschyl-Allan said the cost is well worth it.
“The expectation from the families is that there is a place where people can come to visit and there is a place that they can memorialize their family members,” she said. “It is important to have a place where people can be a rest and that families can come and reflect and share the memories and share some time with their loved ones.”
While the expansion addresses existing space issues, Stickel said the work of the board will never be complete.
“We are already talking about what do we see for the next year and the year after,” she said. “We need to make sure we move forward in the right direction, that we always have room and that people enjoy it when they go there. That they are happy that their family member or friend is in a good place.”