Modern Burial at Lakewood Garden Mausoleum

As the economy steadily improves, more consumers and businesses are investing in landscaping. Immediately, we may think of office buildings or residential homes, but here we find a cemetery in Minneapolis, Minn. that sought an update. Ron Gjerde, president of the Lakewood Cemetery Association, stated that the association was worried about cemeteries “retaining relevancy” with the increase of cremations in recent years. “Here, future families can come and learn about you, learn who you are…We encourage people to use a cemetery for remembrance,” he says.

During the design and reconstruction of the Lakewood Cemetery, one question was kept at the forefront of the involved parties’ minds: “How do we connect the community and do future burials that respect modern ideals of death and dying?” One does not often think of cemetery or mausoleum grounds as personable to visitors. To alter this way of thinking, the premises were renovated into an “unabashedly contemporary” space under the collaborative efforts of the Boston-based landscape architecture office Halvorson Design Partnership and the Minneapolis-based architecture firm HGA.

The new facility exquisitely intertwines the indoor and outdoor spaces, visually and physically, while still maintaining the historic elements of the property, such as the chapel built in 1909, garden crypts of the 1960s and the mausoleum of 1967. New additions included a green roof, reflecting pool, knot garden, refinished gathering space, and another mausoleum with a reception center.

From both functional and aesthetic standpoints, the architecture and landscape create a place where one can reflect on passed loved ones in peace. Click through the photo gallery to view the Lakewood Cemetery and Mausoleum.

Photo Credit: Landscape Architecture magazine / Paul Crosby

Project Credits:

Landscape Architecture: Halvorson Design Partnership, Boston
Architecture: HGA architects & Engineers, Minneapolis
Civil & Structural Engineering: HGA architects & Engineers, Minneapolis
Cemetery Planning Consultant: Elizabeth Vizza Consulting, Brookline, Mass.
Fountain Design: Commercial Aquatic Engineering, Eden Prairie, Minn.
Horticultural Soil Scientist: Pine & Swallow Environmental Groton, Massachusetts.
Mausoleum Consultant: Carrier Mausoleums Construction, Ville Saint-Laurent, Quebec.
Owner’s Representative: Nelson, Tietz & Hoye, Minneapolis.
General Contractor: M.A. Mortenson Company, Minneapolis.
Landscape Contractors: Aloha Landscaping, Mendota Heights, Minn.; Sterling Arbor, New Germany, Minn.

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