The Town of Lake Cowichan’s columbarium project continues to move closer to life, with a project update being presented at last week’s town council meeting.
Council had previously identified the town’s lack of a cemetery as a major concern for residents, and began putting forth the idea of a columbarium, a building used to house cremated remains, when it became clear that there was no suitable area for a cemetery within Lake Cowichan.
Contract planner James van Hemert was present at last week’s town council meeting to provide an update on the project.
Van Hemert opened his update by explaining that cremation is now the preferred method within Canada, especially in British Columbia, where 80 per cent of people are now cremated, making columbariums a “consumer preference.”
“Having a local columbarium is an important piece of being a friendly community,” he said.
Van Hemert evaluated several sites as the location for a columbarium, with Central Park coming out as the top location, partly due to being flat but also for its aesthetic qualities.
One of the concerns for a columbarium in Central Park would be activities taking place nearby, primarily Music in the Lake and river tubing during the summer.
The idea of building a columbarium in town was first introduced last April. Councillor Tim McGonigle has been among those pushing for its construction.
“It’s an excellent idea that doesn’t need to be a full-blown cemetery,” he said earlier this year. “It’s also a provincially legislated service but you don’t need a lot of room for it. It’s just for cremations and urns.”
Van Hemert also consulted with local church ministers, who expressed interest in having a public columbarium in Lake Cowichan.
“My only concern is that people will still want to do it as a funeral,” Mayor Ross Forrest said. “Having [the columbarium] near a hiking trail might make it difficult, but Central Park incorporates a group setting well.”
Forrest said that the next step for the town will be to identify a shortlist of three potential sites and make a rough budget of the project, which may be incorporated as early as 2016. The town will also be pursuing a grant which will allow them to build a set of public washrooms at the chosen site.
“Lots of people have ashes sitting on their mantle,” Van Hemert said. “There might be some people interested even if their loved ones passed away years ago.”
