The Drumheller Cemetery will be getting an expansion after council approved funds for the project at their meeting on Monday.
Council heard from infrastructure director Armia Mikhaiel that the existing cemetery is running out of burial plots and an expansion is needed in order to accommodate for future plots. The cemetery expands by 50-75 plots each year and town CAO Darryl Drohomerski said the longer the town waits on the project the closer the cemetery gets to capacity.
Council approved a total allocation of $180,000 for the project, of which $150,000 had been budgeted in their 2018 capital plan. The motion heard at council on Monday was to allocate the additional $30,000 from reserves because at the time, the budget was based on a cost estimate for construction but did not include money for engineering and a paleontological assessment of the site. Of that additional $30,000, half is being allocated as a contingency fund for the project.
The tender was awarded to the lowest bidder, Northridge Construction of Red Deer County.
Correction: It was erroneously reported that Northridge Construction was located in Grand Forks, North Dakota. They are actually located in Red Deer County. We apologize for any misunderstanding.
