Trumbull Cemetery Headstone Proposal Causes Debate

TRUMBULL, CT — The Diocese of Bridgeport is asking the town planning and zoning commission to allow headstones in Gates of Heaven Cemetery. Currently, the cemetery is only allowed to have flat markers.

Diocese representative Ray Rizio said that the cemetery is the only one in town that has the restriction.

“I’ll say we lost a number of people that would like to be buried in Gates of Heaven, but without having a headstone they’ve gone to other cemeteries,” Rizio said during a December Planning and

Zoning Commission meeting. Commissioner Anthony Chory described the current cemetery as a unique open prairie area. Putting headstones randomly in an open field could be jarring to families of people who are already buried there, he said.

“To just start randomly start changing the whole prairie-like view would to me be hurtful to somebody who's not used to that,” he said.

Commission Chairman Fred Garrity urged the applicant to come back with a more specific plan about where they would like to put headstones and what non-headstone areas could be preserved.

“The change that’s being made is the ability for families and individuals themselves to be able to choose the lot and type of recognition for all of eternity after they pass away versus the opinions of some neighbors for a brief period of time,” Garrity said.

The application was tabled for later in January. The diocese will come back with more specific plans about where it would like to put headstones and areas where it will keep grave sites flat, Rizio said.