Thanks to UF officials, die-hard Gators fans might never have to leave campus - and they mean never.
The UF Foundation, UF's fundraising organization, will present a plan to UF's Board of Trustees to install a site on UF's campus for alumni and other Swamp enthusiasts to rest in orange-and-blue peace.
The memorial, known as a columbarium, will protect and honor ash-filled urns kept in individual niches.
The plan will be presented this afternoon to the Finance and Facilities Committee of UF's Board of Trustees, UF's highest governing body.
The foundation does not need the board to approve the plans, said Paul Robell, UF vice president for development and alumni affairs. Foundation officials are only seeking feedback.
Robell said the idea of a UF resting place has been bouncing around for about a year.
The foundation has talked to other universities with similar memorials and to some vendors, but the cost of building the burial ground is still unknown, he said. It depends on demand.
Inhabiting one of the spots would probably cost about ,3,000, which Robell said would pay for installation, landscaping and upkeep.
The columbarium would not generate any extra revenue for UF, he added.
Robell said he thinks the memorial would be attractive to alumni because it promises permanence.
"We're an increasingly mobile society," he said. "We don't have the same kind of roots we used to have when people were born in a town and stayed there all their lives."
The foundation has its sights on the University Gardens near Lake Alice for the construction because that spot is quiet and secluded, he said.
So far, there hasn't been overwhelming demand from alumni for the columbarium, but he said he thinks that's only because it hasn't been offered.
He said other universities with similar memorials, such as the University of Notre Dame and the Citadel, have had no problem with demand.
Construction on UF's columbarium will not start until the foundation has sold a significant amount of niches, he said.
