Elgin council approves sale of cemetery plots to Midwest Islamic Center

The Elgin City Council gave preliminary approval Wednesday to a plan to sell 934 grave sites at Bluff City Cemetery to the Midwest Islamic Center for $481,000.

The sale is anticipated to result in $1,942,720 in future burial revenue based on the current rate.

The cemetery has been selling areas of the property to local Muslim groups since 2011 and three different groups currently own space within three different sections of the cemetery. The areas are different from nonsectarian burial areas as each of the grave sites must face due east.

The 934 spaces are in the eastern half of section 23, at the northeast corner of the property. The adjacent sections 25 and 26 are 100% Muslim and section 24 is part Muslim and part nonsectarian, separated by a concrete curb divider.

The Midwest Islamic Center currently has fewer than 50 spaces that are not spoken for out of the original 1,000 they own in section 25. They'll pay $515 per space, a discount of 36 percent compared to a single burial space. The discount is similar to previous large group sales, the city said.

The proposed sale does not include the cost of burial, which averages $2,080 in the Muslim section.

The 108-acre cemetery, owned and operated by the city, has been in use since 1889. City staff estimates that about 7,250 spaces will remain for sale to individuals and groups after the sale. The cemetery averages about 150 lot sales per year, suggesting there is approximately 50 years of grave space sales available after the sale.

The city still has to finalize the details of the sale with the Midwest Islamic Center before the issue is brought up for a final council vote.