An uptick in burials at a state veterans cemetery in North Little Rock has officials thinking of expansion sooner than expected.
The Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs is in the preliminary stages of obtaining a federal grant to add burial space and make several infrastructure improvements at the Arkansas State Veterans Cemetery at North Little Rock, 1501 W. Maryland Ave.
The cemetery expanded last year and, at the time, more additions weren't anticipated until 2019. However, it was determined during an annual evaluation that the cemetery would run out of certain types of graves in four years if current trends hold, said Bill Wussick, the state Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs assistant director of cemeteries.
The department received a favorable priority rating after submitting a "pre-application" for the federal grant. Wussick is hopeful the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs will make a final determination in early October.
"It all depends on what other states submit," he said.
The cemetery in North Little Rock is one of two operated by the state for veterans -- the other is in Birdeye, a small, unincorporated town in northeast Arkansas. The federal VA manages three others in the state, but one is full.
The federal VA offers burial benefits to honorably discharged veterans. Included with the benefit are grave sites, interment, perpetual care, a government headstone, a burial flag and Presidential Memorial Certificate free of charge. Spouses and eligible dependents also may be buried with veterans, but must pay a small fee in most cases.
Nearly 250,000 veterans live in Arkansas, and it's a rapidly aging group composed in large part of veterans of mid-20th C century wars.
"We are experiencing an increase of interments but have not done an analyses to determine the cause," Wussick said, adding that the uptick may be caused by increased awareness of burial benefits or the decreased cost and not necessarily a war period. "However, I would not rule that out."
If the current pace continues, the North Little Rock cemetery would run out of columbarium space for cremated veterans in 2021 and oversize, in-ground graves in 2020.
The department also hopes to fund several infrastructure improvements with the grant, including an expanded roadway, some fencing, an addition to the administration building and a new well to help irrigate the property from an on-site lake to make the cemetery "greener," Wussick said.
The North Little Rock cemetery opened in 2001. About 40 of its 82 acres have been developed.
As of July, the cemetery had 7,907 interments, according to department data. The federal VA approves the construction of state veterans cemeteries with the expectation they will conduct interments for 100 years before reaching capacity, but Wussick said the North Little Rock cemetery may not make it to the century mark because the property's geological features make it difficult to develop.
A state legislative committee on Wednesday reviewed a request from the state VA for authorization to spend $770,000 on the planning state stage of the cemetery improvements, and it approved Gov. Asa Hutchinson's request to transfer $770,000 to the department from the state's rainy-day fund.
In a letter, the state VA said it needed $750,000 to pay design fees for a competitively selected firm and $20,000 for start up startup costs such as an environmental assessment.
"The state needed to show a commitment very soon to provide matching funds in order to receive federal funds," said Duncan Baird, state budget administrator. "That's why we wanted to act quickly on this."
Wussick said any state funds spent on the front end eventually will be reimbursed.
Information for this article was contributed by Brian Fanney of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Metro on 08/21/2017