A veterans cemetery in southeastern Louisiana is entering its final stages of construction, according to The Associated Press.
The Southeast Louisiana Veterans Cemetery, which is slated to open in April, cost $8 million to construct, the news source reported. Once completed, the cemetery will span 75 acres adjacent to the Louisiana National Guard's Camp Villere, which donated the property for the cemetery.
"When we get the landscaping in here, it's really going to set this thing off," project superintendent Greg Gibson told the news outlet "It's going to look really nice."
Robin Keller, communications director for the state Department of Veterans Affairs, added that the burial grounds will have an information kiosk where visitors can find the location of a grave. Those who are eligible to be buried in the cemetery are qualifying veterans, their spouses and their dependents.
The Department of Veteran Affairs provided the state with the funding for the cemetery. According to the VA website, there are more than 130 national veterans cemeteries in 39 states, as well as 33 monument sites and soldier's lots. Louisiana currently has four veterans cemeteries, but only one – the Louisiana National Cemetery – is open to new interments.