In a pre-emptive move, the Saratoga Cemetery District bought a house on Lomita Avenue with an eye toward possible expansion, but neighboring homeowners are concerned about what the purchase may mean for their neighborhood’s charm.
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The district manages Madronia Cemetery, providing just under 12.5 acres of burial ground for Saratoga and Monte Sereno property owners. The house at 20604 Lomita Ave., which is right next to the cemetery, was put up for sale by the Darlington family trust. During a special meeting on March 26, the cemetery district made an offer on the house, and the purchase was approved in a unanimous vote on April 11, costing the district $4.54 million. The sale closed on April 21.
Steve Albright, general manager of Madronia Cemetery, said the board had been looking to purchase property to expand the cemetery for the last four to five years. So when the house on Lomita Avenue went up for sale, they wanted to make an offer to address the limited available land left in the cemetery, an issue that has been plaguing the South Bay.
“Just because we purchased the land, we realized it might never be a cemetery, but we feel like we wouldn’t be doing our jobs if we didn’t make an offer on the land,” Albright said. “Because once we’re out of land, we’re out of land, and we feel like it’s our responsibility to keep the cemetery going.”
The cemetery opened on two acres in 1863. Since then, Madronia has been been deeded several other parcels, the last one in 2003 for $1.6 million, bringing the total acreage up to 12.432.
Of this land, 10.4 acres has already been used. Albright estimated that the remaining two acres could provide enough burial space for the next 20 years, so developing the purchased land isn’t urgent. But if necessary, the land the house sits on would add a half-acre, which Albright estimated could last another six to seven years.
However, for at least the next decade or so, Albright said there isn’t a move by the cemetery district to rezone the parcel to allow for use by the cemetery, and the home will likely be rented out for the time being.
Some neighbors expressed measured concern over what little they heard about the purchase. Srini Ramaswamy, a 56-year-old resident of Lomita Avenue, said he knew their neighbor’s house had gone up for sale but only heard through word of mouth that the cemetery had bought it.
When he and his family moved in just a couple years ago, the nearby cemetery wasn’t immediately off-putting. Ramaswamy said he was still attracted to the quiet neighborhood on the cul-de-sac that bordered the cemetery. However, he said he would be concerned about the cemetery’s acquisition if it “alters the character of the place.”
“I don’t know fully what to make of it yet,” Ramaswamy said. “It would depend on what the plans are.”
This isn’t the first time the cemetery district has tried to buy house and was met with community dissent. In 2007, the cemetery district tried to buy two properties on Oak Street, but residents took the dispute to the Santa Clara County board of supervisors and the city of Saratoga.
Alternatively, Albright said that if Madronia Cemetery runs out of space, the district may open a new cemetery somewhere else, but it would cost millions of dollars to do so. The cemetery is funded through property taxes distributed by the county, which is why only residents are eligible to be buried there. It allows the cemetery to charge less for their services than elsewhere in the county.
In the 2023 fiscal year, Madronia Cemetery received a little under $3 million in revenue, which includes $1.4 million in property taxes and $248,000 for services. They spent about $920,000, which includes the costs for paying their employees’ salaries and benefits and for holding funeral services.
Albright said it costs an average of $8,500 for someone to be buried in Madronia Cemetery, which includes the cost of a plot, digging the grave and burial, as well as fees for perpetual maintenance and recording and the sales tax.
In contrast, it would cost between $14,000 and $16,000 to bury someone at Los Gatos Memorial Park, said a representative of the privately owned cemetery.
“Having a cemetery in your town just for the residents of your town is a valuable thing,” Albright said. “Until it’s gone, people won’t understand how nice it was to have that.”