City completes phase II of cemetery expansion

by Laura Bednar

The city’s second phase of improvements at Maple Shade Cemetery was completed in November. Engineer Don Ramm said Fabrizi Trucking & Paving performed the work, which included a four-acre expansion, new traditional grave plots, a new entrance, a concrete drive and landscaping. The project cost was $611,714.

Ramm said the new layout includes a concrete drive for entering and exiting from Brecksville Road and a parking network to access the new plots that connects to the drive. 

“The plots are located on the western two-acre portion of the land, while a two-acre eastern portion of land was prepared for future expansion,” said Ramm.

The western expansion was south of the Cleveland Cavaliers practice facility driveway. This second phase of the cemetery added 1,321 new burial plots, which include 25 singles, 633 doubles and 10 triples.

In a January 2024 city council meeting, Mayor Greg Kurtz said there were fewer than 25 traditional burial plots left in the old portion of the cemetery. The plots there were to be sold on an as-needed basis until the end of 2024. In 2025, the traditional plots in the old portion of the cemetery will be sold using the new pricing structure council approved in January. 

A traditional gravesite costs $675. The opening and closing costs for a grave are $350 for a single adult grave, $500 for a double deep adult grave and $200 for a grave of a child under 6 or for a buried urn. Ramm said the new plots would be available for purchase by residents soon. 

The first phase of improvements included the purchase and installation of three columbarium walls, which were dedicated in August 2023. Each granite wall has 48 niches on either side, for a total of 96, to store urns holding the cremated remains of the deceased. Each 12-by-12-inch niche can hold up to two urns and has a black granite door that can be engraved with a person’s name and birth and death dates.

A niche in the columbarium walls costs $600. The opening and closing costs for a niche the first time are $300 and $150 to store a second urn in the same space.Planning for a third phase is still underway. “It is anticipated that Phase 3 could incorporate decorative aluminum fencing with masonry columns along the cemetery frontages of Brecksville Road and Rockside Road,” said Ramm.