A new federal pledge has supporters of Orange County’s long-awaited veterans cemetery feeling good about funding secured for the project, and a necessary new state feasibility study is expected this spring.
Assemblywoman Sharon Quirk-Silva, D-Fullerton, who has long advocated for the proposed cemetery, said the funding secured constitutes “real progress” in the county’s commitment to ensure its veterans can be laid to rest at home.
“For years, veterans and their families in Orange County and across Southern California have fought to secure a final resting place close to home,” Quirk-Silva said. “Today, we’re closer than ever to making that promise a reality.”
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has offered $10 million in federal funding to the California Department of Veterans Affairs, or CalVet, toward the construction of the Southern California State Veterans Cemetery. The money, which will come out of a grant program, would be dispensed by the end of the fiscal year upon approval of CalVet’s completed application.
Orange County is the largest county in the state without a veterans cemetery, despite being home to an estimated veteran population of 84,000, one-third of whom are 75 or older.
Efforts to establish a dedicated veterans cemetery in the county began more than a decade ago, but the project has faced many hurdles in the intervening years, including bouncing between locations in Irvine before landing on a plan to partner with a new public cemetery in the works for Gypsum Canyon in Anaheim Hills.
The Anaheim City Council approved both cemeteries in 2024. In November, more than 100 veterans packed an informal state subcommittee hearing to express ire and outrage that the project had not progressed further now that a location and millions of dollars had been secured to get it started.
The 283-acre Gypsum Canyon site, situated near the 91 Freeway and 241 Toll Road, would provide 157 acres for the veterans cemetery and 126 acres for Orange County’s fourth public cemetery. State and county officials have secured $65 million of the $126 million that a previous feasibility study estimated the first phase would cost.
Together, the cemeteries would accommodate roughly 360,000 burials over the next century, officials said.
Quirk-Silva said a requirement for obtaining the $10 million federal grant is completing a new feasibility study, which she said CalVet has told her it is moving up and expects to do by the end of April or beginning of May.
“Part of that is relooking at the site and understanding that there are some cost-saving measures by working with the county, but also by doing less grading, which is the big cost,” she said. “So we’re hoping that that will actually materialize in this next report.”
After the new report is released, Quirk-Silva said state and local officials can initiate the first phase of the project.
Phase 1 of the Orange County Cemetery District’s business plan involves building essential infrastructure for both cemeteries and securing official designation so that veterans would be eligible for burial benefits. The second phase involves preparations for the public cemetery grounds, such as incorporating a maintenance facility, in-ground casket and cremation spaces, a rose garden, parking and more.
In the meantime, Quirk-Silva said CalVet and the county should “continue to make sure they work steadily together and meet our marks.”
Officials with CalVet, which will oversee the veterans cemetery, did not return calls for an interview.
“I think the frustration is, if you count from the time this concept started, which is in 2013, it has been over a decade. But if you count from the time the site of Gypsum Canyon has been identified, that was 2022. So from 2022 to now, we’re in 2026, we’ve moved very steadily,” Quirk-Silva said. “We’ve also attained additional funds every year under the budget. So we’re making progress. But to listen to veterans, I understand the urgency, and I understand, you know, that sheer need to want to move this even faster, because we know our veterans are aging and actually dying.”
Tim Deutsch, Orange County Cemetery District’s general manager, said the county is currently working “hand in hand” with CalVet and the Department of General Services on the mass grading and design portions of Phase 1. The three agencies have been collaborating twice a month on construction calls and will be figuring out a cost estimate for the new layout in the coming weeks, he said.
“It’s a great thing they got additional funding,” Deutsch said. “We’re trying to do everything we can to become as cost-effective and cost-efficient as possible.”
Deutsch said the district is hoping to get the public cemetery up and running by late 2027 or 2028 before available casket spaces are filled up at existing cemeteries.
The Orange County Cemetery District operates cemeteries in Anaheim, Lake Forest and Santa Ana that offer lower-cost burials. Capacity is running low even at the newest cemetery: Deutsch said that the 650 or so remaining casket spaces at El Toro Memorial Park in Lake Forest could sell out by next summer.