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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCemetary Commission Minutes 10.15.1996 MInuTES CEMETERY BOARD OCTOBER 15, 1996 8:30 A.M. LAUREL CITY HALL MEMBERS PRESENT: Dirk Kroll, Chairman Lloyd Shay William Staudinger Jim Flisrand Cathy Gabrian OTHERS PRESENT: None Gay Easton Sue Strand Andy Loebe Cathy had a request to allow a spouse to be buried on the grave of a veteran in the designated veteran areas in Division K and Division J. Discussion regarding the burial of ashes and how the grave would be marked. Some felt foot stones in this area would deter from the beauty of these sections. Cathy said she has seen spouses names engraved on the back of the white upright veterans stones in other military cemeteries. Cathy will verify that the monument companies in the Billings area are able to do this. Motion by Andy Loebe, seconded by Dirk Kroll to allow the ashes of a spouse to be placed in an existing veteran's grave in the designated veteran sections and to allow the information to be engraved on the back of the veteran's stone if possible. Motion carried. Discussion regarding our policy regarding how the lots are being sold and it was the consensus of the board to have approximately. three rows available that individuals can choose from at any one time. Discussion regarding headstones and connecting the concrete between graves to alleviate a lot of maintenance work. Sue stated that she feels this needs to be enforced every time a stone is set, even in the old sections. Sue stated that at times, she has seen private individuals setting stones and if she is at the cemetery when this happens, she informs them of our regulations. But, since the city does not handle stones, it is very hard for us to regulate who is setting the stones in every case. Jim stated that we can require that all headstone work be done to a certain standard and if it is not, then we can require that it be redone. Jim explained how he would like to see the headstones set with the edge of the headstone placed on the lot line and the concrete collar extending into the walkway area. This would allow the headstone and all the concrete to sit on solid ground and it would not be disturbed, even if it is a pre-need headstone. This would also make it easier for the companies setting the stones since they can string a guide line between the re-bar on the ends of each row. This will work well in the newest section because there are very few headstones but in more established sections, the headstone needs to be set so it is consistent with the average alignment of the row. Andy stated that we may be able to utilize community service workers to dig out the small areas between headstones where we are wanting concrete poured. Me and Jim will discuss the feasibility of this. In regards to the cemetery property boundary line, Jim stated he surveyed the cemetery and found that the trees, curb and gutter along the south side of the cemetery are within the cemetery's boundary, but the fence lies about 12 to 18 inches on Schessler's property. Cathy stated that the north end of Section J is plaid for baby graves. She was wondering if we want to keep this area reserved as a baby section or re-plat it and sell as full size graves. The baby section in Division K still has a lot of available graves and generally, when a family loses a baby, they purchase several lots in an area where they can be together. Motion by William Staudin~er, seconded by Lloyd Shay to eliminate the baby graves in Section J, re-plat the area and sell as full size graves. Motion carried. Sue stated that the stones in the baby section are too close to mow around so the area has to be done with a weed eater. She was wondering if something can be done to make the maintenance of this area more efficient. Discussion regarding the trees in the cemetery and the need to spray for bugs. William said that if the city owns a pressure sprayer, it would not take long to spray each tree. He feels the trees are an asset to the cemetery and we should do all we can to preserve them. William stated that he is at the cemetery quite often for funerals and many times the cart that holds the vault is sitting very close to the grave site. He feels this detracts from the service. Sue stated that the cart belongs to Lang's Cemetery Service. She will ask them to keep the cart by the cemetery shop until the service is over. Discussion regarding complaints about the crew moving in too fast to do the final stage of the burial. Sue stated that the men from the funeral home always signal to them when it is alright to start covering the grave. They never move in before they are signaled. Sue said that at times, people are still around but some want to stay and see this final process. William commented about the planes that fly over the cemetery during a funeral. It was stated that there is not a lot we can do about this but Jim stated that we could notify the Airport Authority and ask the pilots to be considerate and fly off in a direction that is away from the cemetery when they see a service taking place. Discussion regarding whether the fees we are charging for opening and closing a grave are covering the actual cost. Jim will check into this and report back at the next meeting. It was stated that we must keep the cemetery "user-friendly" and available during the normal work day. If our fees do not cover the occasional overtime situation that arises, then we need to increase the fees. It was reported that the office is working on a book for the cemetery workers that would be available to them at all times and facilitate them in their work. It would include a map of each section and all rules and regulations governing the cemetery. Jim stated that we will try to clarify our rules and regulations and make sure that all monument companies are aware of them. The meeting adjourned at 10:00 a.m. Respectfully submitted, Cathy Gabrian Deputy City Clerk