Dying can be expensive.
And it’s often unexpected.
“A lot of people don’t plan for that situation,” Iola City Councilman Mark Peters noted at the Council’s Jan. 20 meeting.
Faced with assorted funeral costs for a traditional funeral, many opt for a less expensive option — cremation.
“It’s the cheapest,” Peters said. “Then they look for a place to put their urn, and they find it’s expensive.”
Twenty-five years ago, relatively few — 2 in 10, according to national averages — opted for cremation instead of a traditional burial.
But those numbers have steadily changed, Peters noted. Cremations began outnumbering burials in 2016.
Today, cremation rates are 6 in 10, Peters noted. But families still are saddled with the cost of deciding a place to put their loved ones’ remains. A space for cremated remains at Highland Cemetery, for example, cost $100 (compared to $300 for a traditional burial space).
“For a lot of those people, it’s still expensive,” Peters said, noting 1 in 4 who opt for cremation still have urns sitting “on a mantle or in a closet somewhere.
“It’d be beneficial if we could do something for the citizens of Allen County,” he said, suggesting the city consider erecting a columbarium.
A columbarium is a permanent structure or room with compartments to permanently hold urns.
Peters showed examples of columbariums to his fellow Council members. A 12 foot by 12 foot columbarium he displayed was capable of holding up to 54 urns, although larger ones can be designed as well.
Many are made of marble or aluminum.
Peters pointed to another columbarium in the shape of a bench — urns are placed in the hollowed out legs — that have become a popular design for families.
Mayor Steve French said he would speak with Cemetery Superintendent Robbie Droessler about looking into the matter.
SPEAKING of Council matters, Camile Lavon, the city’s economic development director, will deliver a synopsis Monday of 2025’s economic activity for the community, and her plans for 2026.
Thrive Allen County representatives also will be on hand at Monday’s Council meeting to discuss a $1.4 million housing rehabilitation grant made available to low- and moderate-income Allen Countians for housing rehabilitation.
Thrive reps also will discuss two other grant opportunities, one to assist with trail maintenance, the other to provide signage for downtown businesses.
