Mammoth Mausoleum

Holy SepulchreCemetery, owned by the Rochester Catholic Diocese, is about 2/3rds of the way from completing Christ Our Light Mausoleum which when finished will be the largest such facility in the area.

It will initially contain 5,300 crypts, with the potential to expand to 7,000. In addition, there will be 2,000 niches for urns for those who choose to have cremated remains interred. Though cemetery administrators would not reveal the cost of the project they do confirm its in the multi-millions of dollars.

The construction of the facility reflects a growing trend of more people opting for above ground burials.  There's also a very practical aspect involved.

Some cemeteries are simply running out of space. And although that's not neccessarily the case at Holy Sepulchre, (which with 330 acres figures it has enough space to handle ground burials for another 30 years) even Rochester's largest cemetery is aware that demand for space will be on the rise as the Baby Boomers reach the age of mortality.

"In this half acre building, we can interr the same number of people which, were they to be buried in the ground, would require 22 acres of land," said the cemetery's Executive Director Jim Weisbeck.

Weisbeck also promises this will not only be the largest, but the most nicely appointed mausoleum "anywhere in upstate New York."

With its marbled and natural wood interior, heated and air conditioned rooms, and glass sided exterior he confidently states that Christ Our Lamb will be a "world class facility, the likes of which our area has never seen."

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