‘A beautiful location’: New state cemetery for military veterans coming to Washington Terrace

WASHINGTON TERRACE, Weber County — A new cemetery for military veterans, just the second in Utah, is coming to an undeveloped parcel in Washington Terrace, with work to start as early as next year.

“It’s a beautiful location for a cemetery. There’s some very big bluffs where the main cemetery will be built,” said Jeff Hanson, a deputy commissioner with the Utah Department of Veterans and Military Affairs who focuses on facilities. Expansion areas extend to lower bluffs, he said, “but the view is incredible.”

The first phase of the project along 5800 South west of South 500 East calls for roads, an administration building, a committal shelter, a flag plaza, columbarium walls for cremated remains and the initial crypt field. Design work is to be done by September, he said, and the first phase of the cemetery work will then be put out for bids.

Development could begin in 2027, he estimates, with the first phase work to take perhaps a year. A federal grant will cover the estimated $14 million price tag of the first phase, and the state will handle subsequent maintenance and upkeep.

The development is significant for veterans in Weber and Davis counties and the rest of northern Utah because it gives them a more feasible option for burial in a veterans cemetery. The only other state facility for veterans is the Utah State Veterans Cemetery and Memorial Park north of Camp Williams in Bluffdale while the only federal cemetery with open burial space is the Southern Utah National Cemetery in Cedar City.

“Having a veterans cemetery in northern Utah, veterans can consider that option, and it’s a good option because a veteran can receive a free plot and a free marker,” Hanson said. “Not only that, but it’s just going to be an extremely beautiful cemetery based on its location. … I think there’ll be a lot of interest for veterans to be interred at the facility.”

Beyond that, he said the facility, overlooking the Weber River and I-84 to the south, would be an apt location for Veterans Day and Memorial Day events, with the planned flag plaza expected to be able to accommodate around 200 people. The project area sits at the largely undeveloped southern end of Washington Terrace, across the Weber River from the northern end of Hill Air Force Base in adjacent Davis County.

The project has been in the works for years, and the 102-acre parcel of land for the cemetery was donated from a private landowner. Last week, the Washington Terrace City Council amended the zoning of the project area to allow for cemetery development. The parcel size allows for expansion in the years and decades to come.

“We think it’s a wonderful addition to our community and the region,” said Washington Terrace City Manager Tom Hanson. “We have all the confidence that it’ll be a wonderful neighbor and a benefit to the veterans, particularly in our area.”

Terry Schow, an advocate for veterans in northern Utah and the former executive director of the Utah Department of Veterans Affairs, before its name change, said there are around 18,000 military veterans living in Davis County and 17,000 or 18,000 in Weber County. Another 4,500 or so live in Box Elder and Cache counties more to the north.

“From a veteran standpoint, obviously we’re happy to have something up here in northern Utah. You got Hill Air Force Base up here, a lot of military people here,” he said.