PRESS RELEASE
Washington Department of Veterans Affairs Announces Approval of Federal Assistance for Cemetery Expansion
Olympia, WA – The Washington Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) is pleased to announce that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has approved an expansion of the Washington State Veterans Cemetery in Medical Lake. The VA grant totals $4,153,953.
“Securing this grant is a monumental achievement for our team and the community, reflecting our collective dedication to honoring our veterans,” said WDVA Director, David Puente. “The expansion of the Washington State Veterans Cemetery in Medical Lake will ensure we continue to provide the dignified resting place our heroes deserve.”
WDVA will use the grant to fund the construction of columbaria, signage, a pedestrian stairway, construct a service road for maintenance vehicles, upgrade the facility’s irrigation pumps, add landscaping, and supporting infrastructure. The project will develop approximately 1 acre and include 5,120 columbarium niches. The existing cemetery is located near Medical Lake, Washington, approximately 2 miles northwest of downtown, on 119 acres of land off West Espanola Road.
“This project will provide approximately 10 years of additional capacity for above-ground cremation interments,” said Rudy Lopez, State Veteran Cemetery Director. “We expect construction to being this fall with the initial earthwork and concrete work, which will cure over the winter. The remaining phases of work will be completed in 2025.” This is the cemetery’s fourth expansion in a phased master plan that will develop the cemetery incrementally to meet the needs of Veterans in Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho.
The project is not expected to disrupt cemetery operations or interment scheduling.
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For more information, please contact the Washington Department of Veterans Affairs at HeidiA@dva.wa.gov.
View this release on WDVA's website at Washington Department of Veterans Affairs Announces Approval of Federal Assistance for Cemetery Expansion | WDVA
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