Frustration with lack of upkeep at Assumption Cemetery
AUSTIN, Texas - Family members of loved ones at Assumption Cemetery in Austin say they're frustrated by the lack of upkeep.
Valerie Herrera went to Assumption Cemetery to visit her mother last week. She noticed water running, called the office, got no answer, and came back a couple of days later to find it looking worse.
"A bunch of graves had been flooded. It looks like there's a big pipe that was broken. A lot of the gravestones are like sunken into the ground," she said.
She says Wednesday, Nov. 1 she saw crews working on a pipe.
"My assumption is that the pipe might get fixed, but the property won't. A lot of the gravestones are broken, and mud is covering a lot of them," she said.
Herrera says there are other issues, and it's been months since hearing anything about getting her mother's headstone.
"It's supposed to be a place that we come and, like, enjoy their company. I feel like every time I come, I have a complaint of some sort, whether it's dirty or the grass isn't cut or there's trash everywhere, or they throw away the flowers that we just posted," she said.
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She says she's heard from others with similar issues.
"I was glad to hear that I wasn't alone, but it was really disappointing to hear that I wasn't alone as well," she said. "People just want answers. I feel like if we had answers in general, we wouldn't be so upset."
FOX 7 went to the cemetery office, but it said it was closed to the public despite it being during their office hours. We tried calling as well with no answer.
"It kind of makes me feel frustrated to the point where I wish we had put her elsewhere or even cremated her just because that spot doesn't feel like a beautiful place to come visit," Herrera said.