Chapter 2.44
WAPATO MEMORIAL PARK
Sections:
2.44.020 Fees, charges and refunds.
2.44.050 Interment--Regulations.
2.44.110 Maintenance standards.
2.44.120 Procedure for purchase of lot in Wapato Memorial Park.
2.44.130 Additional regulations.
2.44.150 Loss, theft or damage to property.
2.44.005 Definitions.
Throughout this chapter, whenever the word "cemetery" is used, it is referring to Wapato Memorial Park, a park wherein graves may be marked with either flat monuments or upright monuments as provided for in this chapter. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §21(A), 2015)
2.44.010 Board--Appointment.
The mayor shall appoint a memorial park advisory board consisting of no more than five members and no less than three members, at least one of whom shall be a member of the city council. Members of the board must live in Yakima County and have an interest in the operation and maintenance of the memorial park. The board shall act as an advisory board and advise the mayor as to any proposed changes in policies and/or procedures at the city memorial park which the mayor will bring to the city council for discussion and possible approval. The board shall also bring issues related to the memorial park to the mayor for discussion as they arise, and otherwise advise the mayor on the status of the memorial park when appropriate. The memorial park advisory board shall provide a report directly to the city council quarterly. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §9(B), 2015: Ord. 1275 §1, 2013: Ord. 841 §16, 1986)
2.44.020 Fees, charges and refunds.
The fees and charges for the services provided by the city in the operation of its cemetery shall be as set forth by resolution of the city council and approved by the mayor. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §9(C), 2015: Ord. 1027 §1, 1996: Ord. 1015 §§1, 2, 1996; Ord. 1002 §1, 1995; Ord. 937 §1, 1993; Ord. 905 §1, 1990: Ord. 896 §1, 1990; Ord. 841 §2, 1986)
2.44.030 Saturday interment.
The charges for a Saturday interment shall be in addition to standard fees and charges. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 841 §3, 1986)
2.44.040 Interment--Hours.
Graveside services may be held on weekdays during normal hours that the cemetery is open but shall not commence any later than one p.m. unless a special exception to the hours is requested and the city provides written permission authorizing the same. In the event that such a graveside service shall extend so long as to cause city personnel to work overtime after the conclusion of the service, the presiding funeral home shall be liable to the city for the overtime costs thus incurred. All graveside services held on Saturdays shall be commenced by eleven a.m. Overtime shall be paid by the person requesting the Saturday interment. There shall be no interments or graveside services on Sundays or legal holidays, except as may be required by law. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §9(D), 2015: Ord. 1049 §1, 1998: Ord. 841 §4, 1986)
2.44.050 Interment--Regulations.
A. Burial plots may be purchased at the office of the city clerk/treasurer. Interments will not be permitted in burial plots not paid for. Burial plots will be sold at prices set by the city council. Further procedure for purchase of plots may be found in Section 2.44.120.
B. The cemetery capital improvement fund fees will be set by fee resolution. Improvement fund fees may be used for any cemetery expense, including those outlined in Section 3.32.010, but may not be used for expenses for the basic operation of the cemetery.
C. Burial plots are sold for the purpose of burial of the human dead only. Burial plots can hold up to two caskets or one casket and two cremains for an adult single plot, or can hold up to four (two caskets and two cremains or one casket and three cremains for an adult double plot).
D. No burial will be permitted in the cemetery without a permit from a health officer, coroner or physician and a proper death certificate.
E. Signs and advertisements of every description are strictly prohibited in any part of the cemetery.
F. All persons disturbing the quiet or good order of the cemetery by noises or disorderly or improper conduct or who shall violate any of the rules or regulations contained in this chapter will be ejected from the cemetery and will be charged with disorderly conduct.
G. No vehicle, other than city maintenance vehicles, shall be driven in any part of the cemetery except on the driveways laid out for that purpose or on unimproved property. Automobiles shall not be driven in the cemetery at a speed exceeding five miles per hour.
H. No vehicle shall be driven or parked without permission from the superintendent in any part of the cemetery between the hours of nine p.m. and eight a.m. of each day. Any person violating this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine not to exceed one hundred dollars and confinement within the city jail not to exceed thirty days or by both fine and imprisonment.
I. On the death of any owner of burial plots in the cemetery, the heirs or assigns or devises of such descendant must furnish, and file with the city, satisfactory proof of their ownership and all such papers shall remain with the city. Without such proof, ownership of such burial plot cannot be recognized by the city. No transfer of any burial plot or interest therein will be valid without the consent of the city first being had and endorsed upon such transfer and the same shall have been endorsed on the books of the city. A burial plot owner may permit an interment of one not a member of his family, but an heir may not give such permission without the unanimous consent of all the burial plot owners. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §9(E), 2015: Ord. 1156 §1, 2007; Ord. 841 §5, 1986)
2.44.060 Interment--Notice.
The city requires a minimum of forty-eight hours’ notice for interments. All arrangements for interments shall be made during normal business hours of the city clerk/treasurer’s office. Arrangements can be made on weekends by contacting the city clerk/treasurer and the city crew manager. No person or persons are authorized to make interments of human remains (bodies or ashes) within the cemetery without first securing clearance through the office of the city clerk/treasurer. The direction of funerals while within the cemetery shall be subject to the control of the cemetery superintendent or his assistants. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §9(F), 2015: Ord. 841 §6, 1986)
2.44.070 Interment--Public assistance.
Repealed by Ord. 1307. (Ord. 841 §7, 1986)
2.44.080 Cremation garden.
The city shall establish a cremation garden within the borders of its existing plotted cemetery grounds. This garden shall be Section B, Blocks 53 and 54. Cremation plots shall be two feet by two feet. The charge for these plots will be as determined by city council. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §9(G), 2015: Ord. 841 §8, 1986)
2.44.090 Running water.
The city shall establish nonpotable running water for cemetery visitors during the irrigation season. The city shall provide garbage and recycling facilities. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §9(H), 2015: Ord. 841 §9, 1986)
2.44.100 Road maintenance.
The city shall maintain the cemetery roads in passable condition at all times. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 841 §10, 1986)
2.44.105 Pets.
No pets shall be allowed in the cemetery other than service animals. Service animal owners shall keep their animals leashed and clean up after them. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §21(B), 2015)
2.44.110 Maintenance standards.
A. The city shall maintain the cemetery grounds in accordance with industry standards. There will be a fertilizing and pesticide program established by the city crew manager.
B. In order to secure the best general appearance, the city requires that all plantings be done only in accordance with the established plan under the direction of the public works director or his designee.
C. No burial plots shall be raised above the contours of the surrounding ground. To ensure the proper development of the grounds, the grade of all plots will be determined by the city.
D. No cooping or any kind of enclosure will be permitted. Small trees, shrubs, roses or other plants set out at the corner of a grave to define its limits will not be allowed. Boundaries of lots will be marked by cornerstones, which will be set by the city with the centers upon the lines bounding the lots. Cornerstones must not project above the ground and must not be altered or removed.
E. No iron work or wire work and no seats or benches will be allowed on graves except by permission of the city. When any articles on any grave become unsightly or deteriorate, it shall be the right and the duty of the public works director or his designee to remove the same.
F. The city reserves the right to exclude or remove from any grave any headstones, monuments or other structure, tree, plant or any object whatever which may conflict with the regulations or which the city may consider injurious to the general appearance of the grounds. No trees, plants or flowers growing within any grave shall be removed or trimmed without the consent of the public works director.
G. The city reserves the right to lay out, alter or vacate such avenues and walks, to establish the grades of avenues, walks and roads, and to change these rules and regulations or to make such other rules and regulations as may be deemed requisite and proper by the city to secure and promote the general objects and best interests of the cemetery and no notice of such intended action shall be required.
H. The city reserves the right to review and approve all grave markers prior to installation.
I. The city will normally place a concrete marker on each grave within a reasonable time after each interment. These markers may be replaced by a bronze, granite or stone of equal hardness or by a headstone or other monument, subject to the approval of the city at a time convenient for the city and at the expense of the lot owner. Markers, headstones or monuments so installed must conform to the size requirements of the city. Upright, slant, flat, and pillow monuments are approved forms of monuments. The maximum dimensions for the base of such monuments is thirty-two inches by twenty inches. The grave site dimensions and grave marker, headstone or monument dimensions are subject to city approval and must conform to the dimensions and regulations set forth in the following table and diagrams:
Wapato Community Reservation Memorial Park Cemetery
1. Plotted Grave Site Dimensions.
a. Adult--Single forty inches by ninety-six inches. An adult single can be made double depth to accommodate two adult caskets or one casket and two cremains.
b. Adult--Double eighty inches by ninety-six inches. An adult double can accommodate a total of four (either two caskets and two cremains or one casket and three cremains).
c. Baby--Twenty-four inches by forty-six inches.
2. Grave marker, headstone or monument maximum dimensions.
a. Adult--Single marker--four inches by twelve inches by twenty-four inches, and adult headstone or monument--forty inches by twenty inches flat.
b. Adult--Double depth marker--four inches by twelve inches by thirty-six inches, and adult double headstone or monument--forty inches by twenty inches flat.
c. Baby marker--four inches by eight inches by sixteen inches, and baby headstone or monument--twenty-four inches by twelve inches flat.
3. Markers for the cremation garden plots shall not exceed sixteen inches by sixteen inches in width or length.
4. There shall be no more than one grave marker, headstone or monument per plotted grave site unless the grave site is an adult single with double depth or an adult double or where cremains are also buried at the site, as allowed by this chapter, in which case additional markers, headstones, or monuments may be placed for additional caskets and the cremains. These additional markers, headstones, and monuments must conform to the maximum dimensions set forth above and must be approved by the city to ensure they fit within the space and subject to this chapter.
5. There shall be no artificial flowers or artificial material of any kind put on a plotted grave site from March 1st through November 1st.
6. The city may reset a marker only if the person requesting a marker to be reset:
a. Signs a release form, as designated by the city from time to time, which indemnifies and holds the city and its employees and agents harmless for any damage or injury to the grave site, gravestone and/or grave marker during the removal and resetting of the gravestone and/or grave marker, and from any and all claims for damage or injury arising out of such removal and resetting of the gravestone and/or grave marker; and
b. Pays the current setting fee for the gravestone and/or grave marker. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §9(I), 2015: Ord. 896 §2, 1990; Ord. 841 §11, App. A, 1986)
2.44.120 Procedure for purchase of lot in Wapato Memorial Park.
A. Full Payment Required. Any person wishing to purchase a lot in the memorial park shall pay to the city clerk/treasurer the full price thereof before being allowed to use any part of the property. The city clerk/treasurer shall, upon receiving full payment, issue to the purchaser a deed from the city to the lot purchased within fifteen business days. The deed shall be delivered to the purchaser and shall recite that it is accepted by the grantee named therein subject to any and all rules and regulations lawfully imposed for the regulation and management of the cemetery. It shall be attested by the city clerk/treasurer and shall convey the property described therein unto the purchaser thereof and unto the heirs, executors, administrators, and assigns of such purchaser forever. The city clerk/treasurer shall keep such records of such conveyances, and of any and all other business transacted by or on account of the cemetery as may be prescribed by the city council.
B. Payment Plans May Be Allowed. In the event a purchaser is not able to make full payment for a lot, the person wishing to purchase a lot shall enter into a payment contract with the city. That contract shall require a down payment in the amount of one-half of the total amount due and owing for the lot. The remaining balance may be paid in installments, not to exceed twelve monthly installments, until full payment is made.
C. The terms related to the payment plans found herein shall not be retroactive, and shall not adhere or attach to any prior arrangements made by persons for the purchase of lots. Payment plan requirements shall go into effect on the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §9(J), 2015: Ord. 841 §12, 1986)
2.44.125 Refunds.
A. After Full Payment. In the event a refund is requested after full payment, there shall be a one hundred dollar administrative fee assessed as part of the refund process. Refunds will only be allowed if the proper documents are executed transferring the plot or plots back to the city.
B. During an Approved Payment Plan. In the event a refund is requested during the course of a city-approved payment plan, there shall be a one hundred dollar administrative fee assessed as part of the refund process. This fee shall be taken from the account, with the remaining balance returned to the requesting party. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §21(C), 2015)
2.44.130 Additional regulations.
The city, and its public works director, shall have full power and authority to adopt such additional rules and regulations as it may deem advisable for the management, preservation, care and use of the city cemetery, including the interment and exhuming of the dead, and shall have full power and authority from time to time to enlarge, restrict, amend, abrogate or change any rules and regulations and all such rules and regulations shall be binding upon grave owners and upon all other persons, firms and corporations concerned as fully and as effectually as if said rules and regulations were made a part thereof. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §9(K), 2015: Ord. 886 §2(part), 1989; Ord. 841 §16, 1986)
2.44.140 Violation--Penalty.
Any person violating or failing to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter or any lawful rule or regulation adopted by the city pursuant thereto, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine in any sum up to five hundred dollars. Each day of a violation is deemed a separate offense. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §9(L), 2015: Ord. 886 §2(part), 1989; Ord. 841 §18, 1986)
2.44.150 Loss, theft or damage to property.
The city is not responsible for any loss, theft or damage to any items placed at a grave site, the site itself, vases placed at the grave site, or the grave markers. (Ord. 2018-7 §1, 2018; Ord. 1307 §21(D), 2015)