Cemetery operations and records

GUNNISON—The Gunnison City Council has directed Dennis Marker, the city administrator, and J.D. Bunnell, public works director, to develop a proposal for an area dedicated to cremated remains.

Councilman Brian Nielson suggested using part of the cemetery's southeast section, where rocky ground makes full-depth burials difficult.

"I just think that it's a service that our community deserves," Nielson said.

Members considered several possibilities, including columbaria (a structure for funeral urns), but generally favored starting with small ground plots. Staff will return with recommendations covering plot dimensions, markers, maintenance requirements and pricing.

Councilwoman Stella Hill also raised concerns about cemetery tree maintenance and incomplete name signage.

The discussion revealed problems with historical burial records. Marker said staff had discovered an old binder containing names of people buried in the cemetery without corresponding grave locations.

He described a recent inquiry from someone researching an ancestor whose name city staff initially could not locate. Workers subsequently found the name in the binder, but the record did not identify the grave location.

"According to the book they are [buried in the Gunnison cemetery],” Marker said. “We just don't know where.”

Council members discussed updating cemetery nameplates when burials occur rather than when plots are purchased, because plots can change ownership before burial.

The council approved no new cemetery fees or construction expenses.