Beiseiker’s village council unanimously voted against selling its community-owned cemetery to a private buyer during the Jan. 22 meeting.
According to information provided by the Village, a request was received from an unnamed individual to buy the Beiseker Community Cemetery for a group which was looking for land to use for a private cemetery.
While there are only 10 graves in the one acre-sized, community-owned cemetery, councillors expressed concerns that selling to an outside group would mean having to relocate the graves currently on the site elsewhere.
“For me, personally,” said Mayor David Ledoyen during Monday’s council meeting, “it feels like desecration … The thought of digging up bodies to relocate them is not really something I want to do.”
Coun. Warren Wise said he was also not in favour of the sale, but he did acknowledge the Beiseker Community Cemetery is “very little used,” and was in need of some greater attention when it comes to groundskeeping and maintenance.
“If we don’t spruce it up, it is kind of an eyesore,” he stated.
After council voted unanimously against selling the cemetery, Coun. Les Spurgeon presented another motion which would have council visit the cemetery in spring to see what could be done to make it more presentable.
The former committee which used to take care of the cemetery has been defunct for several years now. According to notes provided by the Village, council has been discussing what to do about the cemetery for several years. Spurgeon hoped his motion might help spur that process along.
“It’s a little hard to look at it right now, but once spring comes, and the snow is gone, we should take a closer look at it,” he said.
Council also voted unanimously in favour of Spurgeon’s motion.
