The Waukesha City Cemetery Commission voted unanimously on Oct. 13 to recommend the city’s proposed 2026 executive operating budget for the cemetery, while members reviewed capital improvements and discussed planned withdrawals from cemetery trust funds.

The recommendation approved by the commission forwards the cemetery pages of the city’s executive operating budget to the Common Council process. Commissioners and staff said the proposed 2026 budget includes a projected controllable operating shortfall of “almost $10,000,” and anticipates a planned withdrawal of $175,000 from the Perpetual Care Trust in 2026 to help cover ongoing maintenance costs.

Commission members reviewed items in the cemetery’s capital improvement plan (CIP) slated for upcoming years. Karen, the cemetery director, said the CIP lists roof replacements for the four Autumn Garden mausoleum buildings and caulking and tuckpointing around stonework as major projects planned for next year. The CIP also includes replacing one golf cart per year for four years so replacements have a smaller annual impact, a pickup truck replacement, and a concrete mixer slated for 2028.

“Those two items are major projects to be done next year,” Karen said of the mausoleum roof and masonry work. She also noted staff will consult the city garage fleet manager before any vehicle purchases.

Commission questions focused on scope and alternatives. A commissioner asked whether the planned pickup could be sourced from another city department instead of buying new; Karen said staff have discussed that option and would consult other departments and the fleet manager before procuring a vehicle. On lighting, staff said street lighting along Prairie Home Drive — roughly six decorative poles near the cemetery entrances — has been pushed to 2027 and would add decorative pedestrian-style lighting rather than simply replacing existing fixtures.

City finance staff briefed the commission on how trust funds are factored into the budget. Joe Piper explained historical transfers from trust funds and recommended a higher one-time withdrawal for 2026. “We are asking for $175,000 to be taken out of the trust in 2026. That's what's in the budget,” Piper said, noting the Perpetual Care Trust has accumulated unused investment earnings in recent years and that the projected withdrawal is based on conservative investment-return assumptions.

Piper and staff presented charts showing the trust portfolios’ historical returns and a projection that, under conservative assumptions (about 9% average returns used in the presentation), the funds would still grow even with the proposed withdrawals. Piper cautioned the commission that citywide budget pressures mean transfers from the city operating fund — the cemetery currently receives $88,000 in a city transfer — could be reviewed in future years as the city considers projected shortfalls across departments.

Karen outlined several operational items included in the operating budget pages: completion of HVAC work and a fountain replacement in Autumn Garden, resolution of a water-loss issue, continued work on a cremation garden design, selection of cemetery software next year, additional marketing and a new community engagement event, and development of a comprehensive master plan. She told commissioners she expects to return in December with a review of rates and fees to close the projected shortfall.

The commission also received project updates in the director’s report: a pre-bid meeting for tuckpointing at the chapel (work could start this winter or next spring), a forthcoming security camera installation, coordination with prairie-restoration groups and the fire department to attempt a prairie burn, sale and planned planting of six memorial trees this fall, and a Friends-funded veterans reflection area that would incorporate an arbor, monument and flagpole with landscaping. The Friends of Prairie Home Cemetery president reported the friends expect to raise roughly $20,000 for the veterans project and promoted the organization’s Tombstone Trot fundraiser scheduled Oct. 19.

Votes at a glance: The commission approved minutes of the June 9, 2025 meeting and unanimously recommended the proposed 2026 executive operating budget for the cemetery (ID 25-02376). A motion to adjourn also passed.

The commission set its next meeting for Dec. 8, when staff said the agenda will include a more detailed fee-rate review and potential decisions tied to the 2026 budget.