MEETING MINUTES
Cemetery
Board of Trustees
August
26, 2002
A
regular quarterly meeting of the Plymouth Cemetery Board of Trustees was held
at 7:00 pm at the 2nd floor Commission Chambers at Plymouth City
Hall, 201 S. Main St.
ROLL
CALL:
Present: Chairwoman Loretta Olson, Trustees Marian Robertson and
Patricia Grzywacz.
Absent: Trustee Barbara Dougherty
Also Present: Mark Hammar, Steve Faiman
APPROVAL
OF MEETING MINUTES:
It
was moved by Trustee Grzywacz and seconded by Trustee Robertson to approve
the meeting minutes for May 28, 2002 as written.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY
OLD
BUSINESS:
Chairwoman Olson commented on the lack of plastic hooks on
crypt and niche fronts at the Riverside Mausoleum. Steve Faiman, Cemetery Superintendant, stated that he and his
crew have been actively removing the prohibited hooks as they appear, but
families are now purchasing more bronze vases instead of using the plastic
hooks to hang flowers.
Chairwoman
Olson distributed a list of urns that have not had any flowers planted in them
to date. She recommended that if no
further planting activity takes place in these urns, cemetery staff should
remove them in late fall.
NEW
BUSINESS:
Chairwoman
Olson opened the floor to discussion regarding the problems encountered by
the Administration with the current payment plan offered to prospective gravesite
buyers. The Board reviewed the list
of delinquent accounts and noted that the Purchase Agreement for the Bernier
and Vernal families appears to be current and should not be
considered as delinquent. It was agreed
that these two accounts should be removed from the delinquent list.
Trustee
Grzywacz stated that she is against terminating the payment plan offer and
feels it is a much-needed program for hardship cases and senior citizens who
cannot afford a lump sum amount. She
suggested that perhaps the City can resume charging interest on payment plan
accounts as was done years ago.
Chairwoman
Olson stated that it is the job of local banks and not the City to offer loan
payment programs for purchases such as this.
Trustee Robertson suggested that the delinquent accounts should be
notified by letter that their account is delinquent and request payment as soon
as possible, but is against asking for payment in full by December 31,
2002. Chairwoman Olson noted that while
Trustee Dougherty is absent, she spoke with her earlier in the week and that
Trustee Dougherty indicated that she was in favor of terminating the program
and requesting full payment by the end of the year.
Based
on the discussion, Chairwoman Olson
suggested that perhaps the Resolution should be split into two parts; one
Resolution that adopts the Administration’s recommendation to notify delinquent
accounts that full payment of all gravesites be required by December 31, 2002,
and another separate Resolution that adopts the Administration’s recommendation
to discontinue offering the payment plan to prospective buyers of gravesites
and crypts.
It
was moved by Trustee Robertson and seconded by Trustee Grzywacz to notify
the designated delinquent accounts that full payment will be required by December
31, 2002 due to lack of regular monthly payments per the signed Purchase Agreement.
MOTION
CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY
After further discussion by the Board, Chairwoman Olson
asked for a motion for the second part of the Resolution to discontinue the
currently-offered payment plan to prospective buyers of gravesites and
crypts. No motion was made and the
Resolution failed due to lack of support.
Chairwoman
Olson noted that she observed several gravesites where tree seedlings have
begun to sprout and wondered whether this is the responsibility of the mowing
contractor at Riverside Cemetery. Steve
Faiman mentioned that DMS has been working with the current contractor to meet
the service level required under the contract to thoroughly trim around all
headstones.
CORRESPONDENCE:
Chairwoman Olson made mention of the news article included
in the packet regarding cemetery operations in South Lyon. Trustee Grzywacz also commented on how she
enjoys reading about similar situations encountered by other cemeteries.
Hearing
no further business to come before the Board,
Chairwoman Olson sought a motion to adjourn the meeting.
Motion
was made by Trustee Grzywacz and seconded by Trustee Robertson to adjourn
the meeting at 8:03 p.m.
MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY
NEXT
MEETING: Monday, November
25, 2002 – 7:00 pm @ Plymouth City Hall
