The Evergreen Cemetery in Owego, an historic landmark, is in need of repairs. In this photo, a World War 1 veteran grave looks like it has tire tracks on it.
The Evergreen Cemetery in Owego, an historic landmark, is in need of repairs. In this photo, graves appear to have tire tracks on them.
A grave is exposed, in this photo at Evergreen Cemetery in Owego.
Evergreen Cemetery, located off of East Avenue in the Village of Owego, was placed on the State and National Registry of Historic places in 2002. “Evergreen Cemetery is a community treasure, I think more people should visit and appreciate it,” Owego Mayor Kevin Millar said.
But there’s also some problems.
“The cemetery has been in need of vast repairs for some time,” Millar said, “for five or ten years at least.” Those repairs were moving through planning stages after the village received a $326,560 matching grant from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund for the restoration and preservation of the cemetery in 2007. But with the 2011 flood, the preservation and restoration of the Village of Owego itself became the priority.
While flood recovery continues, attention has recently been renewed at the storied Evergreen Cemetery. The 2007 grant essentially expired, and some considerable maneuvering and renegotiations were required to renew the grant. Former Trustee Ann Lockwood undertook that task, and worked tirelessly to renew the grant.
Current Trustee and Cemetery Commissioner Jenny Ceccherelli has now taken the first concrete step to begin the restoration project at Evergreen Cemetery. During the April 20 meeting of the Village Board, Ceccherelli said that the Trustees approved sending out an RFP – Request for Proposal – for the repairs and reconstruction. This first RFP is to repair or replace four historic stone walls at the cemetery, separating existing stone for preservation and reuse in the reconstruction. A 10-year old estimate for this work provided by Ceccherelli put a $258,000 price tag on these repairs.
The $326,560 state grant requires the village to match any grant money spent on cemetery repairs. Millar said he hopes the village will be able to achieve this primarily through in-kind work done by the Department of Public Works such as earthmoving. Millar added that he expected the repairs to be a three to five month project, and that it will progress according to what the village is able to afford to do. Weather will also play a role in how fast work progresses.
A pre-proposal meeting will be taking place at 10 a.m. on May 4, 2015 at the Evergreen Cemetery office on Mountain Road. Bid opening will be on May 18 at 2 p.m. at the DPW Annex, 20 Elm St., Owego. Only firms who come to the pre-proposal meeting will be allowed to submit a proposal, with the proposal bid package only available at that time.
“Evergreen Cemetery is a historic treasure,” Ceccherelli said, “it truly is a record of Owego’s residents for the past two centuries. It’s extremely important that we maintain and respect such a beautiful and significant part of our local history.” Ceccherelli added that the Board of Trustees will continue to seek grant opportunities to repair and maintain the cemetery.
