Upgrading under way at Dearborn cemetery
Dearborn Memorial Park in Poway recently broke ground on the first of several planned upgrades.
Work began March 22 on the first of two gate removals and replacements, which will also include landscaping upgrades, said Carrie Perryman, general manager. Other projects still in the planning stages include creating new areas for visitors to meet, moving the administration building and possibly creating a chapel.
Dearborn Memorial Park is the sole cemetery in the Pomerado Cemetery District. The area it serves includes Poway, Rancho Bernardo, 4S Ranch, Del Sur, Carmel Mountain Ranch, Sabre Springs, part of Scripps Ranch and Rancho Peñasquitos. Anyone residing or paying property taxes within the district is eligible to be interred in Dearborn Memorial Park. The cemetery is at 14361 Tierra Bonita Road.
Construction began with the north gate, closest to Twin Peaks Road. The gates will be completed one at a time to ensure there is always a working gate for visitors, Perryman said. Work on the south gate should begin in early May and finish in August. Perryman said the cost for the gate project is about $600,000 to $700,000.
This is the first major project the cemetery has undertaken in at least 20 years, said Bob Thomas, Pomerado Cemetery District board member.
Other remodel phases still in the planning stages include expanding an existing gazebo and creating other meeting spaces for visitors, Perryman said. This will provide spaces to get out of inclement weather during funerals or visits.
The administration building will be relocated in the future to bring it closer to the main entrance, Perryman said. Where the building is now will be turned into a patio with niches for cremation interments. Thomas said there are also plans to build a chapel on the grounds. The board will discuss future project phases once the gate remodel is complete.
Funding for the projects comes from property taxes paid by district residents, Perryman said. The district has been saving for “quite a few years” to fund the remodel, she added.