GENERAL INFORMATION
To schedule a burial: Fax all discharge documentation to the National Cemetery Scheduling Office at 1-866-900-6417 and follow-up with a phone call to
1-800-535-1117.
The new 295-acre national cemetery in the Sarasota area will serve veterans’ needs for the next 50 years. The cemetery is located in Sarasota County along State Road 72 and approximately four miles east of Interstate 75.
VA prepared an Environmental Assessment for the Sarasota VA National Cemetery site in December 2004. In April 2007, the Department of Veterans Affairs purchased the site from private citizens and has awarded a contract to Miller Legg & Associates of Winter Park, Fla., to design the new cemetery.
Construction of Phase IB, which will consist of nearly 100-acres, will include facilities necessary to maintain, operate, and provide burials for approximately ten years. When this phase of construction is complete the interment areas will provide for nearly 18,200 full casket gravesites, including 15,200 pre-placed crypts, 500 in-ground cremains and approximately 7,200 columbarium niches. The new cemetery will also include an administration and public information center complex with an electronic gravesite locator and public restrooms, a maintenance facility, a cemetery entrance area, a flag assembly area and a memorial walkway and a donations area, as well as two committal shelters. Other infrastructure design elements include roadways, landscaping, utilities, and irrigation.
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HISTORICAL INFORMATION
Under Development.
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NOTABLE PERSONS
Under Development.
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FLORAL/GROUNDS POLICY
Our cemetery floral regulations exist only to reflect the honor and respect we hold for our Nation's Veterans, by preserving the dignity and solemnity of their final resting place.
We welcome and encourage fresh-cut flowers throughout the year and provide flower containers for gravesite display.
Flowers will be removed when they become unsightly, for mowing and maintenance, or if damaged by weather or wildlife. Due to the open nature of the grounds, we cannot guarantee against theft, vandalism or the effects of nature.
Items left at gravesite must be floral in nature and may not stand taller than the headstone. Other items, to include hazardous materials, glass, metal, toys, candles, and balloons are not permitted. Unauthorized items will be removed immediately. Removed items will be held for 30 days.
During the winter holiday season, (December 1 through January 10) potted plants, artificial flowers, wreaths (less than 18 inches in diameter) and grave blankets (less than 2 X 3 feet) are permitted.
During Easter and Memorial Day, potted plants may be placed on gravesites 10 days before through 10 days after the holiday.
In order to preserve the dignity, beauty and serenity of Sarasota National Cemetery, we ask you to please observe the following restrictions. Thank you for your cooperation:
- Pets are not allowed on the cemetery grounds at any time.
- No soliciting.
- Sports or recreational activities of any kind are prohibited.
- No picnicking.
- Public gatherings of a partisan nature are prohibited, no unauthorized gatherings are permitted. Committal shelters are for services only, no loitering.
- Do not litter, please use one of the many receptacles provided.
- Smoking is not allowed on the grounds, in any building or the committal shelter. Please smoke only at the designated receptacles.
- No cutting, digging or otherwise damaging the landscape.
- Boisterous activity, including the playing of loud music, is prohibited.
- Altering a headstone or niche cover in any manner is prohibited. (i.e., marking, sitting on, placing objects upon, attaching photographs or keepsakes to, etc.)
Please note that Sarasota National Cemetery is a fully operational cemetery. If there are services in progress, please keep a respectful distance from the funeral. No photography of funeral services is permitted without the consent of the family. If cemetery workers are engaged in burial operations, please keep to the road, or outside the marked perimeter of operations.
We thank you in advance for providing the respect our Veterans are due by observing the above listed rules. Our Nation's Heroes, some of whom gave their lives for this country, deserve no less than a pristine landscape to honor their final rest.
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