LAFAYETTE, Colo. — Families with loved ones buried in Lafayette’s historic cemetery are reeling after the city announced it will stop allowing traditional casket burials because of overcrowding concerns.
In a letter sent to 200 plot owners last month, the City of Lafayette said a recent survey using ground-penetrating radar uncovered unmarked graves and revealed burial space is far more limited than previously believed.
“Given the density of the graves in the cemetery, it is recommended that any excavation be undertaken with extreme care,” the city’s consultants wrote, according to the letter. Officials concluded that traditional burials pose a risk of disturbing existing graves.
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The city is offering plot owners three options:
- Keep their plot at Lafayette Cemetery but use it only for cremated remains.
- Exchange it — at no cost — for a plot at Coal Creek Cemetery.
- Receive a refund equal to the current purchase price of a Coal Creek Cemetery plot: $1,500.
Lafayette resident and historian Frank Archuleta has spent years studying the cemetery, where many of his relatives are buried and where he had planned to be laid to rest.
“This is our sacred cemetery here, and we must be buried in our sacred cemetery. That’s the bottom line,” Archuleta said. “They [city consultants] do not recommend shutting the entire cemetery down. They just said extreme care when digging, basically.”
Some families, like Danelle, who contacted Denver7 by email, say people purchased plots specifically so they could be buried beside generations of relatives. “Many people purchased plots believing they would one day be buried beside the people they love most,” she wrote. “Now those expectations may suddenly change.”
The new policy marks a shift from last summer, when city officials told Denver7 there was still space for at least one casket burial per plot.
The City of Lafayette will host a public listening session on the matter Wednesday, June 10, at City Hall.
Residents can read the city’s full letter here.
If you are impacted and would like to share your story, please email Colin Riley at colin.riley@denver7.com
