Columbarium Planning Guide for Cemeteries & Funeral Homes

Key Takeaways

• Understand the purpose and meaning of columbaria in today’s cemeteries and funeral homes (USA).
• Explore the many types and styles of columbaria and learn how thoughtful design choices enhance both beauty and functionality.
• Partner with an industry leader like Kyber Columbarium and Construction to ensure your project is designed for lasting value.

As cremation grows in popularity, many cemeteries and funeral homes are seeking ways to include columbaria as part of their memorial options. Understanding the meaning of columbaria in this context goes beyond the dictionary definition; it’s about recognizing how these structures play a role in land use, visitor experience, and long-term value.

Here, we offer a guide outlining what a columbarium is, what types are available, and how you can plan a successful columbarium project that improves your profitability and serves your community for years to come.

What Does “Columbarium” Mean?

Although they’ve been around for millennia, many people are unfamiliar with the meaning of the term “columbarium.” In its simplest form, the term is straightforward: a columbarium is a permanent structure designed to hold urns containing cremated remains.

Ancient vs. Modern Columbaria Styles

When columbaria first appeared in ancient Rome, many were built underground. They, and their counterparts that were built above ground, usually had open niches.

Today’s columbaria are rarely constructed underground, but they may be located indoors or outdoors. It’s also uncommon for niches to be unsealed as they were in the past. Nowadays, urn placement is usually in enclosed niches.

The Meaning of Columbaria to Today’s Cemetery Operators

When you operate cemeteries or other memorial sites, the meaning of columbaria extends beyond the structure itself. Columbaria represent a solution that integrates respect, optimizes space, and is designed for longevity. When expanding or enhancing your existing memorial grounds, adding columbaria reflects both purpose and practicality.

Types & Styles of Columbaria

To further explore what a columbarium can mean in cemetery design and planning, it’s important to look at the types of columbaria available to add to your memorial space. Since every site has distinct architectural, spatial, and cultural needs, the structure(s) you select should echo those considerations.

1. Indoor vs. Outdoor

• Indoor columbaria are often housed in chapels or mausoleums. They are protected from the elements, allowing for comfortable visits from loved ones year-round in areas with weather extremes.
• Outdoor options—meaning columbaria that are in the open air—offer a means to integrate memorial structures with the landscape around them. Well-designed and placed columbaria blend beautifully with gardens, courtyards, and pathways.

2. Granite vs. Glass-Front

Columbaria can be designed with entirely opaque materials, creating a stately, solid appearance. Granite is also a popular option, as it’s known for beauty, strength, and durability.

An increasingly popular style for columbaria blends granite structures with glass-front niches. This allows loved ones to display mementos and personal items alongside urns, creating a deeper connection between visitors and those who have passed.

3. The Modern Above-Ground Columbaria

Modern design options provide site developers with a range of choices, meaning today’s columbaria present nearly limitless opportunities to customize structures to your exact needs.

Sizes & Shapes

Columbaria can consist of just a handful of niches, or they can be much larger. Many units are easily expandable, so you can extend them as your needs grow.

Square, round, rectangular, and even curved structures are common. Depending on the type of columbarium, each unit can be single- or double-sided. The most innovative builders—like Kyber Columbarium and Construction—can also create custom columbarium options, meaning your columbaria can be built to your precise specifications.

Single Columbarium Design or Family Units

When columbarium capacity is not a concern, small structures with a single urn niche are also available. Another popular columbarium style is a family unit, like KyberCC’s Holt design, which can be built with up to 10 spaces.

Personalization

As noted above, glass-front niches allow loved ones to personalize their loved ones’ columbaria resting places with meaningful reminders of the lives they lived. In traditional units, engraved niche plaques serve as personal memorials.

Columbaria and Memorial Planning for Cemeteries

When evaluating what a columbarium means in its most practical terms, taking a look at the big picture aspects of your project is key. Successful columbarium planning requires understanding your site constraints, visitor experience, and financial impact.

Top considerations include:

• Land Use: Assess your columbarium site integration—where will a unit best fit in with existing buildings, gardens, paths, and roadways?
• Demand: Evaluate cremation trends in your area. Growing interest may justify investing in multiple units or planning phased installations.
• Maintenance and Durability: Consider your climate and work with a company that uses materials that hold up well long-term without requiring excessive upkeep.
• Design and Aesthetics: Think about how the structure aligns with your memorial site’s overall aesthetic. Also, remember the deep personal meaning your columbaria will hold for those whose loved ones are inurned there and how your design choices will enhance visitor experience.
• ROI: From a business standpoint, adding columbaria often means improving profitability. Columbaria take better advantage of available space, require less maintenance, and add a broader stream of revenue.

At this point, working with an industry-leading columbarium manufacturer like KyberCC can greatly benefit your evaluation process. They offer extensive planning services, craft their products for durability, and fully guarantee their work to maximize your long-term return.

Features That Enhance the Memorial Experience

As you work through the process of adding columbaria to your memorial site, you’ll discover that design details bring as much meaning to your columbaria project as the larger decisions. These features shape how clients eventually engage with the space.

Committal Shelves

With every order, KyberCC offers a committal shelf and curtain to complement the niche style you’ve chosen. These pieces enhance the inurnment service by adding greater dignity and respect.

Bronze Plaques

Customized bronze columbarium plaques offer a way for loved ones to tell the story of those they have lost. They can include special messages or symbols that infuse the columbarium niches with meaning.

Lighting

Design features like softly lit exteriors or interior lighting in a glass-front niche add welcoming warmth to your columbaria.

Landscape Integration

Designing a cremation garden that sits beautifully within the surrounding landscape can enrich the visitor experience. Including thriving plant life, ponds, benches, and other features creates a serene environment that invites reflection.

Partnering With a Trusted Columbaria Company

With so much to consider, successfully bringing your plan to fruition means choosing a columbarium construction company that is a true partner throughout the process. Working with a team that brings experience, reliability, and craftsmanship to the table is essential.

Why KyberCC

For more than 50 years, Kyber Columbarium and Construction has guided cemetery and funeral home owners across North America through the entire selection and installation process. Whether you need help choosing the best columbaria styles for your site or require long-term maintenance, Kyber is by your side.

From single columbaria to extensive memorial garden projects, our design, construction, and installation team delivers stunning results that stand the test of time. With premium materials and detail-oriented workmanship, we transform your columbarium goals into enduring monuments with lasting value.

Begin Your Planning

We invite you to view our completed projects and our design options. Read through our testimonials to learn more about our commitment to quality. Then, get in touch by email or by phoning 1 (855) 592-3722 to talk about your goals, review your customization options, and get your columbarium project underway.