Lockport Cemetery Expansion Approved By City Council

LOCKPORT, IL — An expansion to the Lockport Cemetery was approved at the City Council meeting on May 17. The council approved a special use permit to allow for the expansion to the existing cemetery, which is east of Madison Street and north of Seventh Street.

According to council documents, the cemetery has been in existence for hundreds of years, dating back to the early 1800s. The property is zoned R-1 single family residential, and a cemetery is classified as a special use within that zoning district.

The cemetery wishes to acquire additional R-1 zoned, city-owned property at 412 Madison St., and consolidate it with existing cemetery property, council documents state. Once the properties consolidate, the "non-conforming cemetery will lose its 'grandfathered use' status and require a special use permit."

The cemetery is a nonprofit, and has a board of directors appointed by the Will County Executive Office.

City Administrator Ben Benson said the City can ask if it gets an appointee as a representative of the City. He added that the retired City Attorney, current alderperson Darren Deskin, as well as business members in the community, are members of the Board.

"We certainly can raise that question and make sure, and continue to monitor that board and if it ever feels like [representation is] getting low, and we don't have representation, we can certainly get it done through the County," Benson said.

City Attorney Sonni Choi Williams said the City can't force representation on the Board, "but do currently have an eye on what they're doing right now."

Mayor Steve Streit said the City tries not to get involved with 501c3's [nonprofits].

Deskin said that 10 people were appointed to the cemetery board last year. He said that when they began meeting last year, the board learned that from a financial standpoint, there were issues.

There are 6,000 people buried at the cemetery, and it took 170 years to fill out the land. With the new land, the cemetery will be offering burials for several more decades.