"Integral and millionaire" reform of Manacor cemetery

ManacorA comprehensive and million-dollar renovation. This is what the Manacor City Council announced this Tuesday during the presentation of the Action and Management Plan for the Son Coletes municipal cemetery, an initiative that combines urban planning actions, infrastructure investments, and a profound administrative modernization with the aim of guaranteeing the safety, conservation, and correct management of an essential public facility for the municipality.

The mayor of Manacor, Miquel Oliver, explained that the Consistory faces "a complex situation accumulated over decades" and stressed that "it is time to act with transparency, responsibility, and respect towards families, assuming the responsibilities that correspond to the City Council".

12,255 burial units

The Son Coletes municipal cemetery, redeveloped in 1953 and until 1957, has approximately 12,255 burial units including graves, chapels, niches, and ossuaries. The old part consists of 720 excavated graves grouped into 20 plots, 116 chapels, and the central grave, while the extension incorporates various types of chapels.

According to the delegate for General Services, Public Space, and Cemetery, Joana Maria Llull, the passage of time, the age of many constructions, and the different building techniques used over the decades have caused structural and humidity problems that require comprehensive action.

Comprehensive appraisal to ascertain its real condition

The City Council has already commissioned a comprehensive technical appraisal that will specifically analyze the old part of the complex. The works include visual inspections, identification of structural damage and pathologies, drilling at different points, and a detailed action plan.

This study will make it possible to determine the structural condition of the different burial units and plan future actions with technical and safety criteria, as explained by the municipal Urban Planning technician, Antoni Puerto, during the press conference.

Currently, several tombs and chapels are closed as a precautionary measure. However, this week 328 burial units in the central tomb will be reopened after the work to fix the cladding panels was carried out for safety reasons.

Investments

The action plan foresees various priority interventions to improve the state of the enclosure.

Among the planned actions, the waterproofing of the old part's garden beds stands out, with an estimated budget of 700,000 euros, to prevent leaks affecting the buried tombs.

The waterproofing of the terraces of the upper chapels of the old part is also planned, with an estimated investment of 27,300 euros, and the waterproofing of the central tomb, budgeted at 126,549 euros.

In addition, the City Council will build a new ossuary and new temporary burial units that will allow future rehabilitation works to be carried out with the maximum guarantees and the utmost respect for the deceased and their families.

Municipal officials have announced that the comprehensive rehabilitation of the cemetery will require a millionaire investment that will likely have to be executed in different phases over several budget years.

Management

In parallel with the construction work, the City Council has initiated a profound administrative reform of the service.

Among the planned measures, the comprehensive modification of the Son Coletes Municipal Cemetery Regulations stands out, with the aim of updating the regulatory framework, clarifying rights and obligations, regulating the ownership and transfer of funeral rights, and facilitating the relationship between owners and the Administration.

An investigation file will also be opened to determine the ownership of burial units, with the request for accrediting documentation from the owners, the publication of the corresponding official announcements, and the procedures for hearing and allegations established by the regulations.

The City Council insists that this process will be fully guarantor and that the objective is to update the available information, not to withdraw rights from families.

New register and digitalization of the service

The plan also includes the creation of an updated cemetery register, the review of the municipal fee, and the acquisition of new management software that will allow for modern and efficient control of the more than 12,000 existing burial units.

This system will facilitate the identification of holders, the management of funeral services, the monitoring of concessions, and communication with families.

Furthermore, the new management model will establish prior authorization procedures for burials and other funeral services, with the aim of ensuring a more agile and secure process.

An action to guarantee the future of Son Coletes

The mayor, Miquel Oliver, stressed that the final objective is "to move from a management conditioned by decades of accumulated problems to an orderly, modern and transparent model".

"The City Council wants to guarantee a safe, well-maintained cemetery with management adapted to current needs. It is a necessary action to respect the memory of families and ensure the future of an essential public service for Manacor," he concluded. In this regard, both Oliver and Llull have insisted on the responsibility of all municipal political groups to undertake a comprehensive reform of this nature.