Master planning helps a cemetery balance development costs with revenue and expand inventory based on need. It also provides a framework for demonstrating permanency to city planners and the public.
Grever & Ward prepares highly functional and attractive burial section plans based on contemporary needs for operational and maintenance economy. These are combined with attractive, salable product selections tailored to your known market.
Designing for the Future
Bidding our loved ones farewell is a highly personal and intimate moment. Cemetery design should be sensitive to these emotional experiences by providing spaces that are soothing and peaceful.
The new cemetery designs take advantage of the beauty of the landscape and provide unique opportunities for memorialization. The strong inclination to cremation allows for the interment of less space, allowing more of the property to be used for gardens and open spaces. The landscapes are replete with eye-opening beauty and offer places for meditation and inspiration.
It is also necessary to consider the long-term sustainability of a cemetery property. This is why it is recommended to have a master plan on the books for new and existing cemeteries, to establish management’s vision of how the site should function over time. The master plan can guide capital improvements and help anticipate future demand, ensuring that the cemetery will serve generations to come.
Designing for the Past
Cemeteries should be accessible to people with physical disabilities. This requires sidewalks and wheelchair-accessible paths throughout the property and adequate parking. It also means ensuring that the cemetery is well-lit and safe.
It’s also important to consider the impact of cemetery design on the environment and on the communities they serve. For example, planting trees that provide shade and nutrients can reduce upkeep costs and create a sense of place.
Finally, cemetery design should include the right mix of facilities and amenities that will appeal to the community. For example, burial plots with views or proximity to park features command premium prices and help increase revenues.
Designing for the Survivors
Cemeteries are a place for both the dead and the living. Designing a space that can accommodate the needs of both is the essence of cemetery design.
A well designed cemetery will also provide a sense of beauty and serenity that will attract both the living and the dead.
Good cemetery design is not only a way to make a graveyard look beautiful, but it also helps increase revenue. Cemetery plots near a memorial park feature or scenic landscape often command a premium over a standard lawn burial.
Involving the community in a cemetery master planning process is an important step. Not only does it add to the overall success of a project, but it will also allow the community to become involved with a monument or memorial that they will own for years to come. A successful master plan process will identify short and long term needs of a cemetery or mausoleum, develop a budget and phasing plan to work new projects into existing spaces.
Designing for the Community
A cemetery should be an important part of a community. It can be a place where families gather, where remembrances are celebrated and, ultimately, where a final farewell is bid. This is a delicate task that needs to be handled with care, respect and understanding.
Cemetery master planning can help to address issues that arise throughout the lifespan of a cemetery. For example, water drainage piping needs to be perfectly sized during the design phase to avoid high up front costs and future replacement costs.
A cemetery can also play a role in the community by being an attractive and accessible place to visit, providing a calming environment that can soothe the soul and offer a refuge from the busy world outside. The use of trees and plantings like birch trees, weeping willows and sugar maple can help to achieve this and promote wildlife on site as well.