A national veterans cemetery was proposed for the southwest corner of Freeman and Mundhank roads in South Barrington. The plan has since been scuttled.
Months after the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs announced it no longer planned to establish a cemetery in South Barrington, the village board on Friday will discuss the controversial proposal and ways to help local veterans.
One option could be supporting the search for a new veterans cemetery site elsewhere in the suburbs, Mayor Paula McCombie said. Another option could be offering services for veterans, such as assistance with financial matters or making medical appointments, she said.
“What can we do?” McCombie said. “Let’s do something.”
The board is set to meet at 3 p.m. at village hall, 30 S. Barrington Road.
The 15-acre site once being eyed by the VA is near the southwest corner of Mundhank and Freeman roads. The VA’s plan — designed to provide burial options for veterans and their families in or near urban areas — called for thousands of niches in walls for cremated remains.
The site would’ve been an extension of the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery near Joliet.
But the proposal drew many objections. McCombie and other critics said a veterans cemetery that would host multiple memorial rifle volleys each day was not appropriate for a site near homes.
They also said potential odors from a nearby, inactive landfill would render the property unfit for veterans and mourners.
Read more here.
Related: “Plans dashed for columbarium cemetery in South Barrington after land site sold, officials say”
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