CHAPTER 91
CEMETERIES
Section
91.03 General rules and regulations
91.04 Vehicle rules and regulations
91.08 Rules and regulations pertaining to burial plots
91.09 Rules and regulations pertaining to interments
91.10 Monuments, markers, decorations and foundations
91.01 GENERAL INFORMATION.
Weston Cemetery was platted in 1873 and has a burial history dating from 1841. It is owned by the city and is administered by a Sexton appointed by the Mayor and approved by the Common Council. All cemetery personnel are employees of the city. The roles and regulations regarding the cemetery are within the constraints of the ordinances of the city and laws set forth by the State of Indiana. Certain rules and regulations are specific to Weston Cemetery. These rules and regulations are designed for the protection of owners of interment rights as a group and they are intended, not as reserving, but rather as preventing the inconsiderate from taking unfair advantage of others. Their enforcement will help protect the cemetery and assist in creating and preserving its beauty. The Sexton (hereafter known as the management) and other Weston Cemetery personnel will be the instruments of the enforcement of these rules and regulations and they shall be enforced at the discretion of Weston Cemetery management. The Sexton is granted, by the state, within the cemetery and the immediate surrounding area which affects the proceedings within the cemetery, powers equal to a peace officer within the jurisdiction (I.C. 23-14-46-6). Weston Cemetery reserves the right to refuse admission to the cemetery, to refuse the use of any cemetery facilities at any time, and to eject any person whom the management may deem objectionable to the best interest of the cemetery. It is incumbent upon each visitor and lot owner to be familiar with the rules and regulations as applies to them. Weston Cemetery may not be held liable for any accident or injury sustained to any visitor as a result of a violation of the rules and regulations of the cemetery.
(Ord. 15-07, passed 4-9-07)
91.02 DEFINITIONS.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
AGENT. A person, corporation or company utilized by Weston Cemetery to perform work at the cemetery.
CONTRACTOR. Any person, corporation or company performing work for gain.
FOUNDATION. A concrete pad designed to support monuments, markers or footstones.
FOOTSTONE. Any raised item, generally stone or metal, placed at the foot end of a burial space.
LOT. A specific section of a cemetery reserved for interment.
LOT OWNER. The person(s) whose name(s) appears on the cemetery deed.
MANAGEMENT. The appointed Sexton of Weston Cemetery. The Maintenance Foreman of the cemetery shall act as management in the absence of the Sexton.
MARKER. Any item, generally stone or metal, placed flush with the ground to memorialize an interred individual.
MONUMENT. Any raised structure placed at the head of interred individuals to memorialize those interred at that location.
PLOT. A burial space within a lot (40" wide by 96" long at Weston Cemetery).
VEHICLE. Any motorized conveyance used to move people or materials.
(Ord. 15-07, passed 4-9-07)
91.03 GENERAL RULES AND REGULATIONS.
(A) Children under the age of 14 years must be accompanied and under the control and management of a responsible adult (18+ years) at all times.
(B) Visitors must walk, jog or run only on paved roadways except to visit a specific grave site or sites.
(C) Snowmobiles and other off-road vehicles and conveyances are forbidden in cemeteries by the state.
(D) Roller skating, roller-blading, bicycling, and the like, is discouraged but permissible on paved surfaces only, and at the risk of the participant. Weston Cemetery will not be liable for injuries sustained while engaging in these activities.
(E) Visitors shall not enter flooded areas or walk along stream banks (Maxwell Ditch) nor use the service bridges (other than the paved bridge) at any time for any reason.
(F) Dogs must be leashed and controlled by owner at all times and must stay on paved roads. Owners may not allow dogs to dig holes and are to clean up any deposits left by their dogs.
(G) Any visitor caught playing upon monuments, cutting or picking flowers, breaking pots or vases, throwing rocks or any other form of mischief will be evicted from the cemetery and may be subject to prosecution.
(H) Weston Cemetery is city property and as such, all animals (mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds and fish) and all plants within the cemetery are protected from any form of hindrance, annoyance or harm, intentional or otherwise.
(I) Trash receptacles are placed at various locations throughout Weston Cemetery and intended for the use of cemetery visitors. Littering, in any form, is prohibited within the cemetery (this includes paper, plastic, metal or any other type of material, containers, soil, plant clippings, and the like). Garbage or trash produced elsewhere and deposited within the cemetery, in or out of containers, is prohibited and violators are subject to prosecution.
(J) A cemetery is the final resting place for those buried there and it demands and expects observance of proper behavior while visitors are in the cemetery; hence, the following actions are prohibited at Weston Cemetery:
(1) Loud and boisterous talking and other noise making.
(2) Loafing or idling on the grounds.
(3) Bringing lunches or refreshments into the cemetery or consuming them on the grounds.
(4) Peddling or soliciting the sale of any commodity within the cemetery.
(5) Placing of signs or notices or advertisements of any kind within the cemetery.
(6) Bringing firearms into the cemetery except by a military escort accompanying a veteran’s burial or attending cemetery sanctioned memorial services or by duly constituted peace enforcement personnel.
(7) Entering the cemetery with or under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs.
(8) Operating motorized two- and three-wheeled vehicles such as motorcycles, motorbikes and mopeds, except as conveyances for physically impaired persons, for any purpose other than visiting specific grave sites or attending burial services.
(9) Weston Cemetery shall be open to the public at dawn each day and shall close at 11:00 p.m. each day. After 11:00 p.m., no person may enter or remain in the cemetery until dawn of the following day, unless the person or group has received a written waiver from the Mayor or the Cemetery Sexton.
(Ord. 15-07, passed 4-9-07) Penalty, see § 10.99
Cross-reference:
For Ordinance Violation Bureau fines for violations of § 91.03(J)(9), see § 34.94
91.04 VEHICLE RULES AND REGULATIONS.
(A) Visitors shall observe a 15 m.p.h. maximum speed limit.
(B) Parking within the cemetery is limited to visiting grave sites and burial proceedings. Persons wishing to use the cemetery for recreational purposes such as walking, jogging, fishing in the Iroquois River, etc., may park at Brookside Park and enter the cemetery on foot.
(C) Visitors to grave sites may not park so as to block passage of other vehicles except as directed by cemetery personnel (primarily, but not exclusively during burial proceedings).
(D) Visitors are subject to all traffic signs within the cemetery and on Bunkum Road (Lincoln Street) whether the signs are temporary or permanent. Road Closed signs means NO ADMITTANCE to non-city worker personnel and SLOW signs placed on Bunkum Road (Lincoln Street) means that vehicles are to reduce their speed as to not exceed 15 m.p.h. between the signs.
(E) Visitor vehicles shall be operated only on paved roads and must maintain tire contact with the paved surface, at least on one side of the vehicle, at all times except when directed otherwise by cemetery personnel.
(F) Making full or partial turn-around with a vehicle is allowed only at road intersections.
(G) Weston Cemetery shall be considered closed to vehicles according to the following schedule:
(1) May 15 through October 15: 9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m.;
(2) October 16 through May 14: 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.
(3) Visitors in vehicles during closed hours are subject to arrest.
(H) Pedestrians and all animals have the right-of-way at all times.
(I) Vehicles with a gross weight exceeding three tons (6,000 pounds) may not enter the cemetery or utilize any of the roads within the cemetery (the only exceptions are cemetery vehicles, city utility vehicles and vehicles approved agents of Weston Cemetery).
(Ord. 15-07, passed 4-9-07) Penalty, see § 10.99
91.05 CEMETERY FEES.
(A) Fees for the purchase of lots are paid at the cemetery office as are all other fees for the services which are paid directly to the cemetery (burial fees and foundation fees may be paid to the cemetery). In the absence of the Cemetery Sexton, fees may be paid to the Clerk-Treasurer at City Hall.
(B) Burial fees are generally paid through the funeral home.
(C) Foundation fees are generally paid through the company which sells the monument.
(D) Fees and costs are established by the Common Council.
(E) Pre-arranged funerals usually DO NOT include cemetery lot costs.
(F) Burial fees and lot payment fees via pending insurance payments, on occasions when severe hardship exists, may be postpaid with the approval of cemetery management.
(G) Fees for the sale of cemetery lots and services provided by the Cemetery Sexton and employees shall be determined by the Common Council.
(Ord. 15-07, passed 4-9-07) Penalty, see § 10.99
91.06 CEMETERY RATES.
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Weston Cemetery Fees and Rates |
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Grave Space $500.00 per space |
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Baby Grave $100.00 per space |
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Normal Grave Interment, Monday through Friday $700.00 |
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Saturday Grave Interment $800.00 |
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Baby Grave Interment $200.00 |
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Cremation Burial, Monday through Friday $400.00 |
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Cremation Burial, Saturday $500.00 |
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Cremation with Cement Vault add $50.00 |
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Disinterment with Vault $1,000.00 |
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Disinterment Cremation $600.00 |
(Ord. 04-2020, passed 2-10-2020)
91.07 CEMETERY PERSONNEL.
(A) Cemetery personnel shall have the authority to coordinate parking for burial processions or any other parking within the cemetery.
(B) The management may authorize cemetery personnel to move, or remove, any embellishment to any grave site at any time (normally, prior notice will be given for holiday embellishments); this includes any and all decorations, planting, etc.
(C) Payments of fees and documents shall be handed over to the Cemetery Sexton or the Clerk-Treasurer.
(D) Professional services such as landscapers, carpenters, masons, etc. MAY NOT perform any service within the cemetery without permission of the cemetery management or as an agent of the cemetery.
(E) Cemetery personnel are not allowed to perform individual lot owner maintenance tasks (such as trimming shrubs, cleaning monuments or markers, etc.) while they are on city time. All arrangements to utilize cemetery personnel must be made through the cemetery management.
(F) Cemetery personnel have the right of passage through any lot or space located within the cemetery at any time and for any purpose.
(Ord. 15-07, passed 4-9-07) Penalty, see § 10.99
91.08 RULES AND REGULATIONS PERTAINING TO BURIAL PLOTS.
(A) Burial rights (as defined by the state):
(1) When a lot owner (the person whose name is on the deed) is buried, that lot becomes a family burial plot and becomes restricted in terms of burial on that lot. Rights to burial, on that lot, for any remaining spaces, are in the following order: surviving spouse, parents and children of the recorded lot owner at need. If no parent or child survives the lot owner, the right of interment shall go first, in order of need, to the spouse of any child of the deceased lot owner and second, in order of need to the heirs at law of the deceased record owner as specified by the statutes of descent or the spouse of any heir at law of the deceased record owner and their spouses.
(2) After the burial of the lot owner, unless the use of cemetery spaces is specifically mentioned in a will or testament, the remaining un-buried spaces may not be sold or gifted and non-family members may not be buried on that lot; burials out of the sequence listed in division (A)(1) of this section must be accompanied by signatures of all affected persons on a notarized quit-claim deed.
(B) Lot purchases.
(1) Lots may be purchased by paying the full amount initially or by entering into a deferred payment contract with Weston Cemetery. Twenty percent of the purchase price is placed into an account known as “Perpetual Care Fund”. The interest from that account is used to help pay for maintenance within the cemetery.
(2) In the event that a burial is to be made on a deferred payment lot, the burial space must be paid in full before burial may be made.
(3) In the event that a burial is to be made on a lot which is reserved and not paid in full and no deferred contract exists, all spaces on that lot and any other cemetery property reserved by the family of the deceased must be paid in full before burial may take place.
(4) This property may be transferred to heirs gifted or sold after it is deeded and prior to the death of the lot owner. Heirs, gifted or purchasers, must present a legal document (notarized Quit-Claim Deed or notarized letter of disposition of property) within one year of notarized date. Failure to present this information to Weston Cemetery may result in denial of all claims and default procedures will be enacted against unused property by Weston Cemetery.
(5) Weston Cemetery does not buy back lots but will keep a record of those wishing to sell spaces for prospective buyers.
(C) Lot usage:
(1) No lot, or plot within a lot, may be used for any purpose other than the interment (gardening, planting, memorializing, etc. of unburied lots is not allowed). Monuments may be set in place on unburied spaces if the space and foundation are fully paid.
(2) No easement or right of interment is granted to any plot owner in any road, drive or walk within the cemetery.
(3) Monuments and permanent markers are not allowed on lots with a balance due.
(4) Planting of flowers, trees, shrubs, and/or bushes is not allowed.
(5) Memorial donations for trees, shrubs, bushes or planted flowers to be placed in cemetery memorial sites may be made and must be encoded for that specific purpose.
(6) The right to enlarge, reduce, re-plat or change the boundaries or grading of the cemetery, or a section or sections, from time to time, including the right to modify or change the locations or remove or re-grade roads, drives, walks, trees or shrubs or any part thereof is hereby reserved. The right to lay, maintain or operate, or alter, pipe lines deemed necessary by the management is expressly reserved by the management.
(7) The cemetery reserves to itself and to those lawfully entitled thereto a perpetual right of ingress and egress over plots for the purpose of passing to and from other plots.
(Ord. 15-07, passed 4-9-07 Penalty, see § 10.99
91.09 RULES AND REGULATIONS PERTAINING TO INTERMENTS.
(A) The cemetery will be open for interments from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. daily with the exception of all Sundays, New Year’s Day, Martin Luther King Day, President’s Day, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Veteran’s Day, Thanksgiving Day, the day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve Day and the Mayor’s Holiday (a day selected by the Mayor and approved by the Common Council each year).
(B) Burials may occur on Sundays and city specified holidays (see division (A) of this section) only by order of a jurisdictional court.
(C) ALL funeral processions entering the cemetery shall be under the authority of cemetery personnel.
(D) Funeral directors, upon arrival at the cemetery, must present the necessary burial permit as required by the state.
(E) All burials must be in vaults. Full burials must be in concrete or metal vaults; cremations may be in concrete or hard plastic vaults.
(F) Vault agencies placing the vaults in the ground are responsible for sealing the vaults.
(G) Arrangements for the payment of any and all indebtedness due the cemetery MUST be made before interments will be allowed.
(H) Cemetery management reserves the right to expect 48 hours (excluding Saturdays, Sundays and city observed holidays) notification prior to interment and a minimum of one week notice for dis-interments.
(I) All interments and dis-interments shall be made by Weston Cemetery personnel or their agents.
(J) Within the confines of the cemetery, a casket containing a body, may not be opened for any purpose without the expressed written consent of the legal representative of the deceased AND consent of cemetery management OR by written and signed court order.
(K) The lot owner or legal representative of the lot owner shall make the designation of the actual burial space. Without an official designation, the cemetery shall be held blameless. The cemetery management may not be held responsible for errors resulting from telephones instructions.
(L) The cemetery shall reserve the right to adjust a burial site when circumstances require an adjustment (i.e., prior burials, trees, monument foundations, etc.).
(Ord. 15-07, passed 4-9-07) Penalty, see § 10.99
91.10 MONUMENTS, MARKERS, DECORATIONS AND FOUNDATIONS.
(A) Monuments and markers.
(1) Monuments and markers may not be set in place without a foundation.
(2) Monuments and markers may not be set to memorialize any space with an unpaid balance.
(3) Setting of monuments, markers and foot stones is the responsibility of the monument seller.
(4) Monuments and foot stones may NOT be set in wet concrete. Markers may be embedded in a floating foundation (3 1/2 inches thick).
(5) Temporary metal markers, such as those provided by a funeral home at the time of burial, MUST be removed by the family within six months after interment; Weston Cemetery personnel may remove and recycle such markers after six months.
(6) Weston Cemetery reserves the right to temporarily relocate or move monuments, footstones, and/or markers due to operational requirements.
(7) Weston Cemetery reserves the right to disallow any monument, foot stone and/or marker it considers NOT to be in proper taste or in the best interest of plot owners and citizens of the city.
(8) Veteran marker foundations and settings shall be provided at a cost corresponding to the maximum amount payable by federal allowance.
(9) No contractor may perform any task relating to foundations or any other feature within Weston Cemetery except for the agents of the cemetery or monument companies with the expressed permission of Weston Cemetery.
(10) Raised footstones and markers are allowed only on lots which contained raised footstones or markers on January 1, 1997.
(11) Decorations or containers such as vases MUST be mounted upon the memorial or flush with and upon the memorial foundation. These containers are not allowed in front of or behind the memorial foundation or upon or near a marker or footstone foundation or elsewhere upon or around a burial site. They may NOT be sunken into the foundation.
(B) Decorating regulations.
(1) The placing of boxes, shells, toys, metal designs, ornaments, chairs, settees, glass vases, jars and similar articles upon plots will not be permitted, and if so placed, cemetery personnel reserve the right to remove and discard them. Exceptions to these rules are as follows:
(a) Funeral flowers may be placed upon and around a grave site for a period of one week or less, depending upon the conditions of the flowers and weather.
(b) Memorial Day decorations will be allowed one week prior to and three weeks after the Monday that Memorial Day is celebrated on. These decorations MUST be clustered around the headstone memorial or in line with the headstone row. They are not allowed on the burial space or anywhere on the ground except around the headstone and will be removed by cemetery personnel if so placed. All ground decorations not in line with the headstone row will be removed by cemetery personnel the third Monday after Memorial Day and discarded.
(c) Grave blankets, grave pillows and wreaths will be permitted from Thanksgiving Day to a date determined by cemetery management on or before April 1.
(d) Artificial flowers and containers will be permitted upon or at the end of a headstone in the headstone (memorial) row in line with family memorials (NOT in front of or behind the headstone). Cemetery management reserves the right to discard such decorations if it deems the decorations to distract from the beauty of the cemetery or a nuisance to maintenance.
(e) Metal ornaments, for war veteran or fraternal groups, with one shaft, will be permitted at the end of a memorial (not marker or footstone) upon the foundation. These ornament shafts must be in the memorial foundation at the end of the memorial.
(2) Construction or altering the ground upon or around burial spaces, such as enclosing the memorial or marker or grave site with a barrier of any sort, is not permitted.
(3) NO live plants will be permitted to be planted within the cemetery except by management or an authorized agent or in vases or urns which are set upon memorial foundations in the headstone row.
(C) Foundations.
(1) Concrete foundations are required for all permanent monument, marker or footstone memorials.
(2) Foundations may be dug, poured and finished only by Weston Cemetery personnel or agents authorized by Weston Cemetery.
(Ord. 15-07, passed 4-9-07) Penalty, see § 10.99
91.11 MAINTENANCE.
(A) Weston Cemetery personnel and/or agents of Weston Cemetery will perform all maintenance at Weston Cemetery except exclusive work for individual lot owners. Examples of the type of work not included is cleaning of monuments and trimming of bushes and shrubs existing in the cemetery prior to January 1, 1997.
(B) Specialized services such as monument cleaning and trimming of bushes and shrubs planted on individual lots prior to January 1, 1997 are the responsibility of the lot owner, their heirs, or trustees as well as the clean up of refuse generated in the process. Shrub or bush trimming must be done at least once per year.
(C) Failure of lot owners, their heirs or trustees to maintain bushes and shrubs planted upon their respective lots may lead to the removal of the shrubs and bushes.
(Ord. 15-07, passed 4-9-07) Penalty, see § 10.99
91.12 CEMETERY CARETAKER.
The Cemetery Superintendent shall now be referred to as the City Cemetery Caretaker pursuant to statute subject to any objections to his appointment after a hearing is held regarding his appointment.
(Ord. 16-2022, passed 9-26-2022)