Karen Gardiner is a regular at Kauae Cemetery, making weekly visits to the grave of her daughter Kristi-Rae Ruri-Gardiner, who died in a 2010 car accident.
The 18-year-old was buried in the blue dress she had planned to wear at her school ball.
Until Christmas, Gardiner had no complaints about the maintenance of her daughter’s resting place.
Kristi-Rae Ruri-Gardiner’s grave site at Kauae Cemetery.
But over the past few months, things had gone “backwards”.
“It’s the worst I’ve seen in 15 years.
“It used to get beautifully mowed all the time, but lately they’ll mow down the middle, but they’ll leave everything on the side, so you’ve got weeds growing up higher than headstones.”
She said it was “ridiculous” that another section of the cemetery, where the ashes of her parents and grandmother are interred, was no longer mowed regularly.
Gardiner maintains the gravesite herself, but understands that others might not be able to.
“Not everybody lives in Rotorua, and I think they would be gutted if they came and saw the mess that’s there at the moment.”
She paid $1000 for the plot, which included maintenance as part of the overall package, she said.
Overgrown grass and weeds at Kauae Cemetery. Photo / Rotorua Notice Board
The conditions at Kauae and Sala St were a talking point on a popular local Facebook page last weekend after an anonymous user posted images of what they called the “neglected, overgrown and disrespected” facility.
Other commenters shared their disappointment at the level of maintenance of the burial sites, calling it “disgusting”, “disgraceful” and “disappointing”.
When Local Democracy Reporting visited Kauae Cemetery on Tuesday, it appeared to have been recently maintained.
Sala St was also well maintained, other than large weeds around older headstones.
Weeds overgrow near headstones at Rotorua Cemetery and Crematorium on Sala St. Photo / Mathew Nash
Rotorua Lakes Council community experience group manager Alex Wilson confirmed council staff were at Kauae Cemetery on Monday and Tuesday mowing and weeding, as part of scheduled maintenance.
Spraying was scheduled for later in the week.
Wilson said she understood there had also been concerns raised about the condition of two of Rotorua’s council-managed cemeteries.
“We know cemeteries are deeply important places for whānau.
“While overall staffing levels have not changed, we have some vacancies that we are actively working to fill.”
Grass had recently been cut at Kauae Cemetery on Tuesday. Photo / Mathew Nash
She said there had been no changes to maintenance budgets over the past 18 months and blamed the recent growth on summer conditions.
“During peak growing periods, vegetation can grow quickly.
“We encourage members of the community to contact our customer service team if they notice any overgrowth at cemeteries, parks or reserves, so it can be addressed as soon as possible.”
She said plot maintenance fees paid for the “long-term upkeep” of the entire cemetery, but did not cover headstone cleaning or repairs.
Cemetery and crematorium management and maintenance were previously the responsibility of Infracore, until the council-controlled organisation was reintegrated into the core council team just over a year ago.
Kauae Cemetery on Ngongotahā Rd. Photo / Mathew Nash
Kauae Urupā/Cemetery Trust Board trustee Kingi Biddle said nobody had approached him about the issue, but the board would work alongside the council to ensure good upkeep.
“The fact it has not been brought up to us does not mean it is not happening.
“Kauae has been a resting place for us long before a cemetery was there, and we want to make sure our loved ones have a safe place to rest.”
Mathew Nash is a Local Democracy Reporting journalist based at the Rotorua Daily Post. He has previously written for SunLive, been a regular contributor to RNZ and was a football reporter in the UK for eight years.
– LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.