Increased vault prices a burden
Published:Saturday | June 22, 2019 | 12:26 AM
THE EDITOR, Sir:
Funeral home operators are facing a serious crisis and steep price increases involving prices at Dovecot Memorial Park.
I am at present in receipt of a correspondence from the management of Dovecot Memorial Park, stating that they are sorry to inform us that they have no regular single vaults, formerly $109,000, or half double vaults at $83,500 available at this time. However, single and half double vaults now available are ‘special’ and are at a cost of $169,800 for single vaults and half double vaults at a cost of $125,600.
They went on to apologise in the correspondence for any inconvenience caused and thanked us for our continued support.
This means that funeral/burial prices will have to be increased. All these additional charges will be borne by the bereaved families.
All we can do at this time is recommend the use of any cemetery/burial park that have not yet increased their prices – government or privately operated place of burial.
We are willing to enter into some sort of a joint venture arrangement with the Government and churches to establish a memorial park, inclusive of a crematorium and above-ground mausoleum, as obtained in the United States, such as New Orleans, where there is a water table problem. This will be the first of its kind in Jamaica.
The newly opened Municipal Corporation Cemetery, operated in Thetford, Old Harbour, St Catherine, is now accepting interments.
JOSEPH M. CORNWALL SR, JP