(a) Due to the limitation of the size of the cemetery owned by the Village and the growing population in the Village and in the general area surrounding Hunting Valley and to preserve and protect such property for the benefit of the residents and their immediate families as hereinafter set forth, the following rules and regulations for the use of the cemetery are hereby adopted:
(1) The remains of the following classes of persons may be interred in the Village Cemetery.
A. Persons who were residents of the Village at the time of their death.
B. A spouse, child or parent of a person who is a resident of the Village at the time of the interment of such spouse, child or parent.
C. Current owners of homes in the Village who reside in the Village on a part-time basis.
D. A former resident, and the spouse, child or parent of such former resident.
Grave sites may be purchased on behalf of persons currently eligible for interment and/or for persons who may become eligible in the future. At the time of purchase the name of the person who will occupy the grave site is not required. The name of said individual shall be provided to the Village at the time of interment. No transfer of a cemetery grave site shall be permitted except to the Village as hereinafter provided.
The Village will repurchase all grave sites from the owner thereof, for the original purchase price, and the Village reserves the right to resell the repurchased sites.
(2) Deeds shall be issued on all grave sites whether standard burial grave sites or cremation grave sites and shall be duly recorded in the official Plat Book in the office of the Finance Director upon payment of purchase price therefor.
(3) The payment of any and all fees and charges for grave sites due to the Village shall be made before the deed for such grave site is issued by the Village.
(4) The right is reserved by the Village to insist upon at least twenty-four hours notice prior to any interment, and at least one week's notice prior to any disinterment or removal.
(5) All interments, disinterments or removals shall be made at the time and in accordance with the following schedule of charges. The schedule of Prices and Fees shall be reviewed by Council regularly and such charges shall be reasonably related to the cost involved of providing the following:
Prices And Fees
Resident grave site, each | $1,000.00 |
$1.500.00 | |
Grave opening, other than for cremated remains | $1,500.00 |
Cremation opening | $ 500.00 |
Temporary and permanent foundations installed pursuant to subsection (a)(26)A. hereof | $400.00 |
Temporary and permanent foundations installed pursuant to subsection (a)(26)B. hereof | $600.00 |
All foundations shall be installed by the Village.
The charge for removals from the cemetery shall be at the current hourly rate of the Service Department to be fixed at the time of the performance of the work by the Village; provided, however, that the minimum charge shall be one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500.00) for each removal. There shall be no wood box removals.
(Ord. 2016-16. Passed 7-12-16.)
(6) All communications as to grave sites to be used shall be in writing to the Village.
(7) The Village shall not be responsible for securing the interment permit nor the identity of the remains of the person sought to be interred.
(8) All workmen employed by outside firms, while within the cemetery, are subject to reasonable regulations of the person in charge of the cemetery.
(9) Where immediate burial is required by the laws of the State of Ohio, under the rules and regulations of the Board of Health, or when religious practice requires, interments may be made on Sundays or holidays.
(10) Funeral directors, upon arrival at the cemetery, shall present the necessary burial permit from the local health office.
(11) No grave site shall be used for any other purpose than for the burial of the human dead.
(12) A single, adult grave site may be used for the burial of up to three (3) cremated remains, provided all remains are of the same family and the grave site is a cremation grave site.
(13) The Village shall take all reasonable precautions to protect the grave site owners, and the property rights of grave site owners, within the cemetery from loss or damage; but the Village distinctly disclaims all responsibility for loss or damage from causes beyond its reasonable control, and especially from damages caused by the elements, an act of God, common enemy, thieves, vandals, strikers, malicious mischief makers, explosions, unavoidable accidents, invasions, insurrections, riots, or order of any military or civil authority, whether the damage be direct or collateral.
(14) The Village reserves and shall have, the right to correct any errors that may be made by it, either in making interments, disinterments or removals, or in the description, transfer or conveyance of any interment property, either by canceling such conveyance and substituting and conveying, in lieu thereof, other interment property of equal value and similar location as far as possible, or as may be selected by the Village, or by refunding the amount of money paid on account of such purchase.
(15) Once a casket containing a body is within the confines of the cemetery, no one shall be permitted to open the casket, or touch the body without the written consent of the legal representative of the deceased, or an order signed by a court of competent jurisdiction.
(16) All orders for interments in grave sites shall be signed by the owner of the grave site or his/her legal representative.
(17) In order to maintain a high standard of care and eliminate sunken graves caused by the collapse of wooden boxes, it is required that all burials shall be made in outside containers and vaults, made of reinforced concrete or steel.
(18) No interments of two or more bodies shall be made in one grave, except in the case of mother and child, or two infants buried in one casket.
(19) Only the Village, its employees and/or agents shall be permitted to open graves, except when ordered by the courts or persons having legal authority to open graves.
(20) Besides being subject to these rules and regulations, all interments, disinterments and removals are subject to the orders and laws of the properly constituted public authorities.
(21) There shall be strict observance of the proprieties in the cemetery. Hence, no person within the cemetery shall engage in conduct unbecoming a sacred place, such as:
A. Loud or boisterous talking.
B. Idling or loafing on the grounds or in any of the buildings.
C. Peddling or soliciting the sale of any service or commodity within the cemetery.
D. Placing of signs or notices or advertisements of any kind within the cemetery.
E. Bringing dogs into the cemetery or any of its buildings.
F. Bringing firearms into the cemetery, except by a military escort accompanying a veteran's funeral or attending memorial services.
G. Littering or throwing rubbish on any part of the grounds or in any building.
H. Picking flowers or damaging or defacing any tree, shrub, plant, memorial, fence, building, or any other structure or property.
(22) Unused grave sites may be converted from cremation grave sites to adult grave sites or from adult grave sites to cremation grave sites. A new deed will be issued without charge for such grave site conversion.
(23) The cemetery shall be open for the owners, their families and friends, and prospective owners of grave sites, during daylight hours only. All others, except authorized personnel, shall be prosecuted as trespassers. The cemetery shall be regularly patrolled by the Police Department.
(24) Drivers of vehicles hired to attend a funeral shall remain quietly in their seats during the funeral services. No person shall engage in any of the following which are hereby prohibited:
A. The driving of motor cars or other vehicles through the cemetery at excessive speeds.
B. Driving any vehicle or animal across or upon any grave site or lawn, or parking or leaving the same thereon.
(25) Planting and decorations of graves shall be in accordance to the following:
A. All plantings will be done by the Village.
B. No glass or plastic blocks, urns or containers shall be used at any time of the year.
C. All Memorial Day or summer flowers or decorations shall be removed from the cemetery grounds by October 15 each year.
D. Christmas decorations shall be removed two weeks after Easter.
E. Easter flowers and decorations shall be removed two weeks after Easter.
F. Neat artificial flowers may be used, but the right is reserved to remove such flowers when they appear dirty, broken or uncared for.
G. Any potted plants, baskets or urns of flowers that are dead or dried up from lack of watering or neglect shall be removed.
H. Cut flowers will be allowed.
I. The Village shall not be responsible for stolen or broken pots, urns, baskets or vases.
J. During the grass mowing season, wreaths, styrofoam crosses, shells, toys, metal designs, ornaments and statues shall not be allowed.
K. The Village shall have the authority to remove all floral designs, flowers, weeds, trees, shrubs, plants or herbage of any kind from the cemetery as soon as in the judgment of the person in charge of the cemetery, they become unsightly, dangerous, detrimental or deceased, or when they do not conform to Village standards.
L. The Village shall not be responsible for frozen plants, pots, or herbage of any kind, or for plantings damaged by the elements or other causes beyond its control.
M. The Village reserves the right to prevent the removal of any flowers, floral designs, trees, shrubs or herbage of any kind, unless the person in charge of the cemetery gives permission.
N. The Village shall undertake to maintain as may be practicable, the planting of trees and shrubs, to preserve and maintain landscape features, but shall not undertake to maintain individual planting.
(26) Headstones shall conform to the following:
A. Individual, or commonly known as "single" markers shall not be longer than thirty inches (30"), nor wider than sixteen inches (16"), nor taller than thirty-six inches (36") above ground level, plus or minus the normal variations recognized in the monument industry. In no event shall a monument be permitted which is in excess of thirty-six inches (36") above grade.
B. Headstones used for two graves (double markers) shall not be longer than forty-eight inches (48"), nor wider than sixteen inches (16"), nor taller than thirty-six inches (36") above ground level, plus or minus the normal variations recognized in the monument industry. In no event shall a monument be permitted which is in excess of thirty-six inches (36") above grade.
C. All foundations for headstones shall be thirty inches (30") deep unless, in the opinion of the Village, a deeper foundation is necessary. The top surface of all foundations shall be flush with the surrounding ground and shall have not less than a five-inch exposed margin on all sides of the marker or headstone on such foundation.
D. Headstones four inches in thickness or less shall be considered to be flush markers and shall be placed in such a way as to make them flush with the ground.
E. For the best interest and protection of the grave site owner, memorials, even for temporary use, of cement, artificial stone composition, wood, tin or iron, shall not be permitted.
F. Should any headstone become unsightly, dilapidated or a danger to any person, the Village shall have the right, at the expense of the grave site owner, either to correct the condition or to remove the same.
G. To prevent error and to protect grave site owners, it shall be the responsibility of the memorial dealer to see that all inscriptions are correctly inscribed on headstones and monuments.
(b) The Village hereby expressly reserves the right to adopt additional rules and regulation or to amend, alter or repeal or waive any rule or regulation or any part thereof at any time and without notice. The duty and responsibility of the enforcement of the rules and regulations is imposed to the Village.
(Ord. 2003-106. Passed 4-8-03.)