January 19, 2025
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Campton Twp. Cemetery District asks voters for rate increase

District would have to abandon Foxfield Cemetery if measure fails

By Brenda Schory
John Hamer at Whitney Cemetery in Campton Hills. The Campton Township Cemetery District has a referendum on the April 1 ballot, asking for the property extension to be increased to 0.0073 – which translates to $7.30 per $100 EAV – for continued cemetery upkeep.

John Hamer at Whitney Cemetery in Campton Hills. The Campton Township Cemetery District has a referendum on the April 1 ballot, asking for the property extension to be increased by 0.0073 – which translates to an additional $7.30 per $100 EAV – for continued cemetery upkeep. (Sandy Bressner)

Voters in the Campton Township Cemetery District will have a referendum April 1 asking for a rate increase officials say is necessary to keep up the maintenance of its four cemeteries.

The question on the consolidated election ballot asks if the limiting rate can be increased by 0.0073.

“Right now the current rate is $2.71 per $100 (EAV),” Hamer said. “Increasing it by $7.30 gives us a total of $10.01,” Cemetery Board Chairperson John said.

Hamer said the current tax rate brings in $25,000, which doesn’t really cover enough.

The increase would give the cemetery district $60,000 a year for its budget, Hamer said.

The cemeteries are God’s Little Acre, New Hampshire, Whitney and Foxfield. Two, New Hampshire and Whitney, are still available for burials, he said.

God’s Little Acre dates back to the Civil War.

“We’ve been discussing it for a long time,” Hamer said of the tax increase request. “Our budget does not sustain what we need.”

He and the other two board members are paid $500 each, but they put the money back in through the cost of gas, using their own vehicles, offices and computers for cemetery-related work, Hamer said.

For Hamer, it includes his Adobe membership, as he photoshops all the maps of the cemeteries.

The rest of the upkeep is hired out for grass cutting and grave digging.

Hamer said 10 to 15 years ago, the current tax rate was enough to maintain the cemeteries and keep up with capital improvements.

But inflation has made that impossible.

“We have about $1,000 left,” Hamer said of the district’s budget. “I hope it (the referendum) passes. It’s difficult for us to keep doing this.”

If the referendum does not pass, the cemetery board will be forced to abandon Foxfield, he said.

“It’s more than just having enough money to pay for the maintenance,” Hamer said. “Capital improvements have not been done in a long time. We put them on hold until we have money. We need a couple of roads done and a fence to work on. And without funds, we can’t even touch that.”

ElectionKane County2025 Election