WEST RICHLAND, Wash. – The Washington Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) wants to build a Veterans Cemetery in the Tri-Cities.
The WDVA held a town hall at the West Richland Police Department on Wednesday to inform the public of the project and to hear from the community on their opinions. There were several veterans in attendance who were eager to hear about the details.
Jerry Larson, a Marine Veteran, said he wants a Veterans Cemetery here.
“It would be nice to have a local cemetery where everybody could come show their respect or even just be buried here,” Larson said.
Solomon Gilbert, the Deputy Director of the WDVA, said the Tri-Cities would be a prime location for a Veterans Cemetery.
“The interest in this area is based on federal data that we have from the Federal Veterans Administration,” said Gilbert. “So, we partner with them and gather data from 46,000 Veterans in the area which pinpoints it to this serviceable area.”
Gilbert said the cemetery would be a community builder, believing that the potential facility will bring people together through Veteran’s and Memorial Day services as well as give people another place to honor Veterans.
Gilbert added that the timeline for this project could be anywhere from five to seven years and that it would cost about $7 to $15 million to build it.
The funding plan includes about 51 percent coming from Armed Forces license plate sales, 35 percent from the Federal Government, nine percent from the state and five percent from family members.
