By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
There are many ways to handle the death of a loved one. The city of Hoisington is bringing another option to the table with the purchase of two 84-niche columbariums. City Manager Jonathan Mitchell clarified pricing at Monday's city council meeting.
"Calling around to other communities, what we found is they actually price them based on their location," he said. "The one that's at the top usually sells for less than the ones in the middle, and the ones at the bottom usually sell for the least."
Whereas mausoleums are above-ground units designed to house casketed remains, columbariums are smaller and designed to house cremated remains. Each columbarium in Hoisington will measure seven feet wide and six feet tall and include 84 12x12-inch niches. Mitchell recommended pricing the niches at $400 for the lowest level, $500 for the top level, and $600 for the middle levels.
"These are higher than what you'd pay for a traditional grave, but your grave opening fee would be treated the same as a cremation grave opening," Mitchell said. "I think a typical grave opening is $300. A cremains grave opening would be $100."
Mitchell said it may cost $125-150 to put a name on the door of each niche, but with no monument or stone on a grave, customers would still pay significantly less than for a standard grave.