Farmers Branch council discusses adding columbarium at Kenan Cemetery, asks staff for more study

Mayor (City of Farmers Branch) presented a proposal on Aug. 6 to extend the fenced boundaries of the city‑owned Kenan Cemetery and install above‑ground columbarium niches to address limited burial space.

The proposal matters because the Kenan Cemetery is an historic, nearly full municipal cemetery and council members were told that cremation is an increasingly common choice; the mayor said the city has had occasions when crews discovered a supposed vacant burial spot was already occupied.

Mayor (City of Farmers Branch) said the proposal would use an area now occupied by a shuffleboard court and a horseshoe pit and would be implemented in phases. He described vendor “egg‑crate” columbarium modules that hold niches on two faces (for example, a 40‑niche module has 40 niches on the front and additional niches on the back), and noted each niche can hold two sets of cremated remains. “I would propose that we would sell these in order,” he said, describing a presale approach and a perpetual maintenance fund tied to the sales. The mayor said a 40‑niche face (80 interments) at a suggested price of $8,000 per niche would raise $640,000 on a presale basis and that he would request up to $200,000 from the city to build an initial phase.

John Brooks, owner of North Dallas Funeral Home, told council that area churches that operate columbaria typically limit niches to church members and that municipal options are scarce. “More and more families are wanting their final disposition here in Farmers Branch,” Brooks said.

Council members asked detailed follow‑up questions about construction costs, long‑term maintenance, security and whether the city would be entering the funeral business. Councilman Neal asked who owns and maintains Kenan Cemetery; staff and the mayor confirmed the city owns and maintains it. Neal and other council members requested research on whether vandalism has occurred historically and how maintenance and security costs would be funded long term.

Councilwoman Villafranca and others supported pursuing the concept but asked for more concrete numbers and options. Villafranca suggested exploring lower price points, presale discounts, and building larger initial capacity. The mayor and Brooks said the $8,000 figure was intended to be in line with market examples and that it did not include funeral home or cremation fees. Brooks said some market offerings near Dallas are significantly higher and that sales often include an endowment for maintenance.

Council members discussed practical next steps; the mayor recommended staff return with a defined design, vendor and contractor estimates, a legal review of land‑use and historic‑site constraints, and a financial model showing construction costs, presale projections and a maintenance endowment. Councilwoman Bennett and Councilman Neal said they needed time to review potential liabilities and long‑term upkeep costs before endorsing construction funding. The mayor offered to work with Councilwoman Villafranca on follow‑up and to return to council with firmer estimates.

The discussion closed with no formal vote. Staff was directed to undertake the additional research and report back to council at a later meeting.

Further details drawn from the presentation: the vendor model discussed holds 40 niches per face, each niche typically fits two sets of cremains; the presenter estimated initial construction for an early phase to be up to $200,000 and suggested a presale price of $8,000 per niche (the presentation noted market rates vary and did not include cremation service fees). The mayor said the site could support multiple phases and potentially several hundred niches over time.

Council members asked staff to evaluate zoning and historical‑site constraints, security and insurance implications, warranty and lifecycle costs for niche materials, and whether a perpetual maintenance fund could be created from sales to offset ongoing cemetery costs.

No ordinance or appropriation was adopted at the Aug. 6 study session; council requested additional information before any formal action.