The Village of Big Valley reviewed their current cemetery bylaw during the regular Thursday, September 23 council meeting following a ratepayer request to include a second urn at the foot of a grave.
Currently, the bylaw permits one casket and one urn, or up to three urns with no casket in each plot.
“We may have lots of room in the cemetery, but if we have any resident who would like to be buried alongside a loved one, I personally am very compassionate,” said Mayor Clark German during the meeting.
Village Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Tracy Mindus noted she reviewed the cemetery bylaws of nearby municipalities, including the Town of Stettler and Town of Olds, and had encountered a varying number of permitted caskets and urns in each of the municipalities she had reviewed.
Mayor German shared he did not have an issue making changes to the cemetery bylaw to permit additional urns or caskets per plot-provided it would not interfere with surrounding plots.
“We’re not viewing the cemetery as a money maker,” Mayor German stated.
Councillor Harry Nibourg motioned for CAO Mindus to continue investigating the cemetery bylaw for other municipalities and to bring back an amendment for council to consider at a future meeting.
