Portage is planning to purchase more land that sits adjacent to the South Cemetery to expand for the future burial needs of the public. South Cemetery is one of two active graveyards within Portage city limits, the other is the Central Cemetery which is located near the Portage District Library.

The Portage City Council voted unanimously to purchase seven acres of land for $148,000 on December 6th. The property the city is preparing to purchase is 7 acres big and is located on Osterhout Avenue on the east side of the cemetery.

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There is no timeline for the development of the expansion of the cemetery, but the design cost will be worked into the upcoming Portage budget cycle for next year. The city will also take on the duty of restructuring the boundaries of the properties for both the cemetery and the homeowner.

According to an agenda packet from the December 6th meeting, the city had the property appraised in March and a good faith offer was presented to the owner of the property in August, in which the two sides came to the $148,000 deal.

Effective Expansion

There's only one logical reason to expand a cemetery right? That means people are dying at either an alarming rate or the death rate has at least risen a little over the past couple of years. 7 acres isn't a ton of land, but how many gravesite plots will be sold of that 7 acres?

Is this expansion effective and needed now? Is this expansion too early and a waste of the city's money? Or do you think the city is thinking ahead and creating plenty of options for future burial needs within the community?

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