Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/16/2002 _ _� � • � • MINUTES OF LEBANON CEMETERY ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING July 16,2002 -2:00 p.m. Apple Valley Central Maintenance Facility COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: Wilt Anderson, Ranee Hadley, Reid Koepp, John Raiche, and Gary Wagner COMMITTEE MEMBERS ABSENT: Gary Humphrey and Dave Kemp OTHERS PRESENT: Public Works Director Nea1 Heuer and Public Works Administrative Manager Pamela Gackstetter Chair Anderson called the meeting to order at 2:04 p.m. APPROVAL OF AGENDA MOTION: of Koepp, seconded by Hadley, approving the agenda for today's meeting as written. Motion passed unanimously. APPROVAL OF MINUTES MOTION: of Hadley, seconded by Koepp, approving the minutes of the April 16, 2002, meeting, as written. Motion passed unanimously. NEW BUSINESS Activity Report Ms. Gackstetter reviewed the 2002 Activity Report. Second quarter activity consisted of 15 lot sales, 9 burials, 0 transfers, and 0 returns. Of the 15 sales, 9 were preneed and 6 were at need. Of the 9 burials, 5 were traditional and 4 were cremation. Ms. Gackstetter said she was happy to report sales numbers were back on track this quarter, as compared to the dismal totals first quarter. Budget Update Mr. Heuer said the cemetery is operating well within the anticipated operating budget. In fact,the estimated actual expenses for 2002 may be $2,000 less than budgeted. Staff is also currently working on the 2003 budget. At this time, the recommended budget for 2003 will be approximately 15 percent lower than 2002. The reason being there are no major improvements scheduled in 2003, outside of$5,000 earmarked for trees, shrubs, and plants. • � . � Chair Anderson questioned if anyone knew whether Committee Member Humphrey contacted the Apple Va11ey American Legion to request financial assistance toward the $1,900 bill the City incurred to install lighting for the United States flag. Mr. Heuer said Committee Member Humphrey requested the supporting documentation from the City, but is unsure if he contacted the Legion. Construction Update Historic Monument Ms. Gackstetter informed the Committee that the supplier of the historic monument estimates the monument will be installed by the end of July. Committee Members wishing to view the monument should be able to stop by the cemetery anytime after the 1 S` of August. Ms. Gackstetter said the monument will be installed on the southeast quadrant of the original cemetery. Grounds Trees City Planted: Mr. Heuer said approximately 30 trees were planted in the cemetery this spring, and according to an update given him by Mr. Flanders, four pin oaks and three linden trees need to be replaced. The four pin oaks are under warranty. Mr. Heuer further said the City's Natural Resources Coordinator has not been overly happy with quality of trees the City received, and may consider a different vendor in the future. The trees will be replaced this fall. Chair Anderson stated he believes there to be at least ten trees that appear dead. Mr. Heuer said the number of dead trees was given to him in a report,but he will ask staff to recount the dead and dying trees. Committee Member Wagner inquired as to when the trees that have died were planted. Mr. Heuer said some were planted last year and some were planted this spring. Committee Member Hadley said it is surprising the trees planted last year did not make it through the winter considering it was so mild. Mr. Heuer said the main problem the City is encauntering when attempting to establish new trees is dealing with the soil. First, it is a clay base which can actually hold too much water; and second, it was thoroughly compacted to provide more stability . when digging graves. However, young trees and roots have a difficult time boring through the compacted material. Chair Anderson said he would like to see several evergreens planted in the expansion area. Ms. Gackstetter said the Landscape Task Force has evaluated the placement of evergreens in the expansion area. Although beautiful, because of their wide base, they conflict with issues relating to lot sales and maintenance. The City does intend to plant some evergreens in the expansion area to tie the two sections together,but the majority of trees planted will be�deciduous. 2 , ` � � Southern Dakota County Labor Council Commitment: Mr. Heuer stated the City received a donation of$155 from the Southern Dakota County Labor Council to purchase an evergreen to be placed within the storm sewer easement between the historic cemetery and Phase I. This area was identified as a logical site to develop a naturalizing area for future use with cremation rocks. In addition, the Southern Dakota County Labor Council has indicated a commitment to donate money to purchase an evergreen tree each of the next nine years. The Southern Dakota County Labor Council offered the donation to commemorate Workers' Memorial Day. Shrubs and Plants Mr. Heuer said the City will purchase and plant approximately 100 shrubs and plants this fall. Chair Anderson asked where the plants will be placed. Ms. Gackstetter said the Landscape Task Force identified the following areas for plantings in 2002: by the sign at the corner of County Road 42 and Pilot Knob Road, in front of the fence at the main entrance on County Road 42, and in the small island containing the center brick column at the main entrance. Chair Anderson questioned whether landscaping would be installed within the parking lot island in an effort to hide the electrical box. Ms. Gackstetter said the Task Force identified that azea for plantings in 2003,but nothing is scheduled for 2002. Moving of Monuxnents/Markers Mr. Heuer said it has come to staff's attention that there are a number of monuments and markers incorrectly placed. Much of this is related to markings which were done many years ago. In order to prevent the matter from worsening,the monuments and markers will be properly aligned. Roadway Mr. Heuer updated the Committee regarding a concern over trucks cutting through the cemetery. Mr. Heuer said large concrete blocks were placed in the path to prevent future truck traffic. This fall concrete and debris will be removed from the south side of the road. It will be graded, and a vegetative cover planted so it can be more easily maintained. Chair Anderson asked the timing of this project. Mr. Heuer responded that it is likely not to occur until mid-September. Cemetery Volunteer Program Mr. Heuer said the Volunteer Program Guidelines, Worksheet, and Agreement included in the packet contain the changes requested at the last meeting and are in final form. Chair Anderson asked if the City has received any other inquiries for participation. Ms. Gackstetter said Mr. Anderson is the only registered volunteer to date. An advertisement promoting the Cemetery Volunteer Program will not be printed in the quarterly City Newsletter until Spring 2003. Ms. Gackstetter further said packets have been prepared for volunteers and are available at both the Central Maintenance Facility and the Municipal Center. 3 � � . Garden Name Signage Ms. Gackstetter said this item was placed on the agenda per the request of Committee Member Kemp. Specifically, Committee Member Kemp wanted the Committee to think about and discuss whether or not it wanted signage out at the cemetery indicating the garden names that were approved at the April 16 meeting. The Committee discussed the placing of signage and decided signage indicating the garden names would not be beneficial. Benches Mr. Heuer said this item was also placed on the agenda at the recommendation of Committee Member Kemp. The reason being, should the City receive a request from an individual or organization who would like to donate dollars toward a bench purchase, the City would be better prepared to make a recommendation as to what style of bench would be permissible, as well as acceptable materials and location for placement. Mr. Heuer said there is no immediate need to make a decision, but believed Committee Member Kemp asked for the item to come before the Committee to initiate discussion. After some discussion, the Committee opted to table the item until the next meeting. Perhaps Committee Member Kemp will be at the meeting and the rest of the members will benefit from his insight and experience regarding this matter. Grave Covers Ms. Gackstetter said she recently received a call from a customer who wished to place a grave cover and was inquiring as to whether grave covers were allowed. Under the current policies and definitions, the City would consider a grave cover a marker because it is installed flush with the ground. Currently, there are no restrictions as to a marker's size, except that the stone must be contained within the size of the lot. Ms. Gackstetter said a copy of the spec she received on grave covers was included in the packet. A grave cover can be 2 to 3 feet wide and 6 to 7 feet in length. The monument company said it would put a cement wash around the marker if it was required, but would prefer to place pilings underneath the grave cover in lieu of the cement wash so as not to add to the size of the marker. They stated that the shear size of the marker/grave cover itself provides the added support typically received from the cement border. Considering this is Lebanon Cemetery's first request to install a grave cover, Ms. Gackstetter wanted to bring it to the attention of the Committee. The Committee discussed possible pros and cons of grave cover installations. It was noted that families appreciate the flexibility Lebanon Cemetery offers them to memorialize their loved ones in a way that is meaningful to them. It was further noted that requests for grave cover installations would most likely be minimal because of their cost. It was decided the Cornmittee would like to view the first grave cover installation 4 . � � • before making any decisions regarding them. Ms. Gackstetter said she will take a picture of it after it is installed and bring it to the next meeting. Solar Lights Ms. Gackstetter said she has also received a call as to whether or not solar lights were permissible. > Within the last year, a few have popped up out at the cemetery. The current policy does not address solar lights. Ms. Gackstetter asked the Committee its opinion about allowing solar lights to be placed on graves. The Committee discussed whether or not they should be allowed. Committee Member Hadley expressed concern that their placement did not interfere with mowing or cemetery maintenance. Committee Member Wagner asked if the City would allow all types of solar lights. Committee Member Raiche stated if the City permitted solar lights he would like uniformity in the type and their placement. The Committee discussed restricting the height to 4 feet, limiting the quantity to one per grave, and requiring placement at the head of the lot. The Committee then discussed solar light placement in conjunction with plant stands, wreaths, flags, etc. Chair Anderson said he would prefer to restrict solar lights. Ms. Gackstetter said she contacted Committee Member Kemp several weeks ago to get his opinion regarding permitting solar lights. Committee Member Kemp said they do not a11ow solar lights in the cemeteries he manages. MOTION: of Koepp, seconded by Anderson, to disallow solar lights from being placed in Lebanon Cemetery. Ayes—4,Nays— 1 (Hadley). Motion passed. Senior Center Visit Chair Anderson provided a summary of the presentation given to the Apple Va11ey seniors on July 11 by Ms. Gackstetter and himself. He said he began the presentation by recapping the cemetery's history. Ms. Gackstetter followed with a Power Point presentation. Chair Anderson said approximately 30 seniors were in attendance and that the presentation was well received. Several questions were asked of the presenters. Committee Member Hadley inquired as to the type of questions asked. Chair Anderson stated the questions were quite varied and that the comments were very positive. Committee Member Wagner thanked Mr. Anderson and Ms. Gackstetter for making the presentation to the seniors. Ms. Gackstetter said she was approached following the presentation regarding an interest by the Apple Va11ey Seniors to make a donation to the cemetery. Chair Anderson said if the Committee can think of other organizations or groups to which a similar presentation could be given,please let him know so it can be arranged. He was thinking it may be beneficial to present this information to the Chamber of Commerce and the Rosemount seniors as well. 5 � � . Mr. Heuer said perhaps Dennis LaComb could tape all or part of the presentation for broadcast on Apple Valley Today. OTHER BUSINESS Newspaper Article Chair Anderson recapped the article in the packet regarding the Southern Dakota County Labor Council's commitment to donate an evergreen for a total of ten years in honor of Worker's Memorial Day. Updated Council, Commission, and Committee List Chair Anderson said the most recent list of the City Council, Commission, and Committee Members, as prepared by City Clerk Mary Mueller, is included in the packet for your information. ADJOURN MOTION: of Wagner, seconded by Raiche, to adjourn the meeting. Motion passed unanimously. Meeting was adjourned at 3:25 p.m. Approved: 6