Parks board recommends Guaje Pines cemetery master plan to county council

The Parks and Recreation Board on Sept. 10 voted unanimously to recommend the Guaje Pines Cemetery master plan, a phased design intended to extend the cemetery's useful life and add higher-density cremation options.

Consultant Stephanie Sloan of Sloan Consulting Group told the board her team approached the project as cemetery operators, aiming to deliver an "actionable and practicable plan" rather than a document that "just gathers dust." Sloan said the cemetery's current developed inventory leaves fewer than two years of unsold columbarium niches and about 34 years of in-ground casket burial in current configuration, and that the plan's recommendations could extend useful life to roughly 69 years by adding vertical cremation options, infill and reconfigured areas.

The plan relies on community input: Sloan said the consultants received more than 150 responses to a public survey and held three community meetings. Greg Graham, the project's landscape designer, described proposed elements including columbarium clusters, a scattering garden, a memorial promenade incorporating a historic rose-garden motif, and a screened maintenance compound to keep operational activity out of view.

The consultants presented a three-phase delivery approach (near-term 1–3 years, intermediate 4–10 years, long term 10+ years) with immediate priorities such as a scattering garden, a columbarium forecourt and maintenance-area consolidation. Sloan gave a budget range: immediate-phase work estimated between $500,000 and $1,000,000; an overall plan cost range of approximately $3.3 million to $6.5 million depending on material choices and whether work is contracted fully or uses in‑house county crews for earthwork.

Board members praised the design and raised a few implementation and aesthetic questions. A board member urged keeping the high ridge area "minimalistic" to preserve views; Sloan said the committal shelter might be dropped to maintain those vistas. Board members also asked about future land adjacent to the cemetery; Sloan noted there is county land and national forest to the south and that the consultants had preserved an easement in the plan that could add about 20 years of casket-burial expansion if used.

After discussion, a board member moved that the Parks and Recreation Board recommend the Guaje Pines Cemetery master plan as presented to county council. The motion was seconded, roll call was taken and the motion passed unanimously.

The board's recommendation sends the plan on to county council for consideration; the consultant and county parks staff said phasing and material choices will affect budget outcomes and that staff capacity could reduce contractor costs where feasible.