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GRGridGirl

By GRGridGirl
in Grand Rapids

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GRGridGirl Hamlet

GRGridGirl

Posted
Posted

Did anyone go by the Fulton Street Cemetery this weekend? A 20 ft. section of the highest point of the north wall, Fountain Street side, came a sliding down. Luckily, the section that came down behind the wall was the pathway, not a gravesite.

On July 9, 1838 Village trustees purchased six acres of land from James Ballard for $300. In 1862, the cemetery was judged too small and the adjoining parcels were deeded by Thomas Gilbert and others. City of GR took over the operation from the dormant "Fulton Street Cemetery Association" in 1948, citing "moral obligation".

This is the place of rest for soo many of our city's leaders. John Ball, Butterworth, Charles C. Comstock, Clark, Kendall, Peck, Reed, and the Leonard families. Our very own Albert Baxter and most of the Lyon Family (Lucius was buried in Detroit).

It must be that our city's founding fathers are angry about? (Insert your guess)

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  • 1 month later...
GRDadof3 Ecumenopolis

GRDadof3

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I just know from experience that a stone retaining wall is much more expensive to build than a concrete one. It usually takes longer, uses more labor, and big stones are expensive. Maybe I'm wrong :huh:

Don't get me wrong, I don't want to see concrete in its place.

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Nitro Burg

Nitro

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I just know from experience that a stone retaining wall is much more expensive to build than a concrete one. It usually takes longer, uses more labor, and big stones are expensive. Maybe I'm wrong :huh:

Don't get me wrong, I don't want to see concrete in its place.

It probably would unless they engineer some way to loose lay them. For longevity they should build a concrete wall and veneer it with stone so we don't have to worry about it again.

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Nitro Burg

Nitro

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Would a stone veneer satisfy the historic commission?

Nice new avatar Nitro :D

They could make the arguement that it is a more sound repair. They would have to do a darn good job of hiding it though.

There are probably some other things they could do that would work as well and still give a more historic feel. I'm sure Rebecca will whip those city engineers into shape.

I like the new avatar as well. Gotta love good 'ol Benny.

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  • 1 month later...
Prankster Burg

Prankster

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I was taking a random route back from the Red G this morning and saw the collapsed wall for the first time... so I took a few pix.

wall1.jpg

It's been 2 1/2 months since it fell. What's holding up the repair work: historic issues, the weather, or both?

Cost. It will cost a small fortune to repair it to historic standards.

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PBJ Burg

PBJ

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the weather, or both?

Yeah.. with this horrible blizzard ridden winter we've had, I can see how working outside would not be possible, I mean 50 degrees a couple times in January is WAY to cold to do masonry work :rolleyes: . :rofl:

I'm guessing more the historical or finding materials may be an issue. OR Maybe funding to fix it is the issue?

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Mark Miller Whistle-Stop

Mark Miller

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One of the more recent proposals was to replace the failed section of the wall with a concrete gravity wall that had a batter (to incline from the vertical) similar to the current wall. This concrete retaining wall would cost over $1 million. This cost would also include building a temporary retaining wall within the cemetery so that the new wall could be built. Upon completion of the actual retaining wall the veneer stones from the original wall would be salvaged and relayed over the concrete wall. Hopefully creating a seamless look (once the remaining existing wall was cleaned). The cost of relaying the veneer was estimated at around $300,000. Total price was around $1.7 million.

This solution, from an actual execution standpoint, may pose problems and the city. Not to mention the cost. To their credit, the city is looking at alternate solutions. I think that the best thing to do here is to make sure that the due dilligence is done and that a solution is not rushed into.

Incidently, the last I had heard, one of the residents on Holland Street, had proposed a very unique "outside the box" solution to fix this and it would probably cost less. This highlights the need to include citizens in these kind of discussions, because many, many times they come up with better solutions than the professionals.

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Prankster Burg

Prankster

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Yeah.. with this horrible blizzard ridden winter we've had, I can see how working outside would not be possible, I mean 50 degrees a couple times in January is WAY to cold to do masonry work :rolleyes: . :rofl:

I'm guessing more the historical or finding materials may be an issue. OR Maybe funding to fix it is the issue?

See my response above. Doesn't anyone pay attention to my posts? :cry: Just bustin your chops, PBJ. :rofl:

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PBJ Burg

PBJ

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See my response above. Doesn't anyone pay attention to my posts? :cry: Just bustin your chops, PBJ.

Nah.. why read the actual thread, I just blurt out stuff :D

OVER A MILLION FREAKING DOLLARS :blink::blink: wow.. I gotta get in the concrete gravity wall business

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  • 7 months later...
GRGridGirl Hamlet

GRGridGirl

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First question:

What is with the retaining wall on Fountain St, right where Eastern meets up with it?

The wall has been broken since a small landslide at least a year ago, maybe two years. I am wondering why the City of Grand Rapids is not fixing this? It's part of the city owned cemetary, right?......

Here you go John Denver:

CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS

FULTON CEMETERY WALL REPAIR

PUBLIC MEETING NOTICE

The City of Grand Rapids in conjunction with the Midtown Neighborhood Association is holding two public meetings to provide information on repair options for the Fulton Cemetery wall and to receive your input on design and cost options for the repair.

The meetings will be held on:

Thursday, September 21 at 6 p.m.

Saturday, October 7 at 1 p.m.

Both meetings will be held at the Salvation Army, 1235 East Fulton

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john_denver Hamlet

john_denver

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Thank You for the update Triple G!

Here you go John Denver:

CITY OF GRAND RAPIDS

FULTON CEMETERY WALL REPAIR

PUBLIC MEETING NOTICE

The City of Grand Rapids in conjunction with the Midtown Neighborhood Association is holding two public meetings to provide information on repair options for the Fulton Cemetery wall and to receive your input on design and cost options for the repair.

The meetings will be held on:

Thursday, September 21 at 6 p.m.

Saturday, October 7 at 1 p.m.

Both meetings will be held at the Salvation Army, 1235 East Fulton

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