On and after the effective date of this subchapter, the following rules and regulations shall be applicable to Grace Lawn Cemetery:
(A) All funerals on reaching Grace Lawn Cemetery shall be under the supervision of the Grace Lawn Cemetery Sexton.
(B) Once a funeral service is completed and the casket is placed in the vault, the Grace Lawn Cemetery Sexton has the right to refuse permission to anyone to open the casket or to touch the body without the consent of the legal representative of the deceased or without a court order.
(C) All interments and disinterments are subject to the orders and laws of the Town of Middlebury, County of Elkhart, and State of Indiana.
(D) When instructions from the cemetery lot owner regarding the location of an interment space in a cemetery lot cannot be obtained, or are indefinite, or for any other reason the space cannot be opened where specified, the Grace Law Cemetery Sexton may, in the Sexton’s discretion, open the space in such location as the Sexton deems best and proper so as to not to delay the funeral.
(E) Grace Lawn Cemetery and its management reserves and shall have the right to correct any errors that are made either in making interments or disinterments and removals.
(F) Grace Lawn Cemetery and its management shall exercise reasonable care in making a disinterment and removal.
(G) All decorations or personal property left at a burial lot must be placed within 16 inches of the base of the grave marker and within the boundary lines of the burial lot property. Grace Lawn Cemetery and its management shall have the authority to remove all floral designs, flowers, trees, shrubs, plants, weeds, or herbage of any kind as well as all decorative landscaping stones and other decorative items of any kind from Grace Lawn Cemetery as soon as such have become unsightly, improperly placed, damaged, dangerous, detrimental, or diseased, in the Sexton’s discretion. No glass shall be allowed.
(H) Grace Lawn Cemetery shall not be liable for floral pieces, baskets, frames to which they are attached, or other items of personal property left in Grace Lawn Cemetery.
(I) No person whatsoever shall be allowed in Grace Lawn Cemetery after sunset or before sunrise.
(J) No alcoholic beverages shall be allowed in Grace Lawn Cemetery.
(K) There shall be no public dumping in Grace Lawn Cemetery.
(L) Grace Lawn Cemetery shall be cleaned twice a year. Each cleaning will occur during designated periods, each period being a full week in duration. The biannual cleanings will occur during the second full week in April and the second full week in November. All decorations and personal property (including, but not limited to, flowers, plantings, and vases) shall be removed before the applicable biannual cleaning period.
(M) All burials of any type or character, including cremations, shall require the usage of a vault or vaults surrounding each casket or other legally permissible container for the remains of the deceased person.
(N) All such burial vaults shall be made of cement, steel, or copper and shall be of such weight and structural strength as to guard against collapse, structural failure, cave-in, or other calamity that has heretofore occurred, or could in the future occur, should considerable weight be placed thereon, by the passage over such by motor vehicles, large groups of people, and/or maintenance equipment.
(O) No mausoleums or other structures shall be placed or constructed within Grace Lawn Cemetery without the prior written approval of the Town Council.
(P) The planting of bushes, shrubs, and trees in Grace Lawn Cemetery is prohibited. Notwithstanding this provision, the Grace Lawn Cemetery Sexton may, in his or her sole discretion, plant bushes, shrubs, and trees in Grace Lawn Cemetery.
(Q) All headstones shall be placed in the manner and at the location required by the Grace Lawn Cemetery Sexton.
(R) Dogs and other pets may be brought into Grace Lawn Cemetery provided that they are continuously restrained by a leash or other adequate device, not exceeding six feet in length. No person owning or having control of any such animal shall cause or permit the animal to run at large within the boundaries of Grace Lawn Cemetery.
(S) The owner or person having control of any dog or other pet in Grace Lawn cemetery shall immediately remove the animal’s excrement and properly dispose of such material in a waste container. Notwithstanding these provisions, a disabled person with a service dog is relieved of the requirement to remove the service dog’s excrement to the extent such requirement is impractical for a person with such disability. For purposes of these provisions, a horse being utilized for transportation purposes is not considered to be a pet.
(Ord. 668, passed 2-21-2022)