[Ord. No. 835 § 1, 12-13-1965; Ord. No. 935 § 1, 6-8-1970; Ord. No. 1306 § 1, 4-21-1986; Ord.
No. 1508 § 1, 11-20-1989; Ord. No. 1711 § 1, 11-16-1992; Ord. No. 2072 § 1, 5-17-1999; Ord. No. 2115 § 1, 5-15-2000; Ord. No. 2223 § 1, 2-18-2003; Ord.
No. 2282 § 1, 3-15-2004; Ord. No. 2378 § 1, 11-21-2005; Ord. No. 2528 § 1, 5-19-2008; Ord. No. 2727 § 1, 5-20-2013; Ord. No. 2989, 11-19-2018; Ord. No. 3071, 8-17-2020]
No dead body or the cremated remains of a dead body shall be interred in the Centralia Cemetery without a permit issued by the Cemetery Sexton of the City. Unless otherwise specified in this Chapter of the Centralia City Code, any reference to "dead body" in this Chapter shall include only human remains or the cremated remains of a dead human body. No other remains, including animal remains or pet remains shall be allowed to be buried or otherwise interred in the Centralia Cemetery. No more than one (1) dead body, or no more than six (6) cremated remains of dead bodies, or no more than one (1) dead body and five (5) cremated remains of dead bodies shall be buried in any one (1) burial space; except that two (2) dead bodies may be buried in one (1) burial space if at least one (1) of the dead bodies is of an infant or small child so as to allow both bodies to be buried in the same burial space without placing one above the other, or if one (1) of the dead bodies is of an infant which is buried with and at the same time as its mother. Each permit issued by the Cemetery Sexton shall include thereon the date and time of issue, the person paying the fee for the permit, the amount of the interment permit fee, the name of the deceased person to be interred in the burial space, the last address of the deceased person, the sex and nationality of the deceased person to be buried, the date of death, the exact location of the burial space, the date and time of burial, whether the permit is for burial of a dead body or the cremated remains of a dead body, whether a dead body is presently buried in the burial space, the number of the remains of cremated bodies presently buried in the burial space, the name of the funeral director to conduct and supervise the burial, the age of the deceased person, and whether or not a vault will be used in the burial. Such permit shall be in duplicate. The original shall be given to the person paying the fee for the permit, and the copy shall be permanently filed, indexed alphabetically in the files of the City, and the permit shall be printed on paper of such size as is convenient for filing. The fee for the interment permit shall be three hundred fifty dollars ($350.00) for a burial space to hold cremated remains, four hundred dollars ($400.00) for a burial space where a grave of less than forty-eight (48) inches in length is dug to hold the dead body of an infant, seven hundred dollars ($700.00) for the digging of a grave designated as "oversized" by the Cemetery Sexton, and six hundred fifty dollars ($650.00) for the digging of any other grave in a burial space, an additional twenty-five dollars ($25.00) for services which require burial on a Saturday, and an additional fifty dollars ($50.00) for services which require burial on a Sunday, which money shall be deposited by the Cemetery Sexton in the Cemetery Operating Fund referred to in Section 6-27. The Cemetery Sexton shall, in addition to the permanent filing of the permits, place upon the permanent map of the Centralia Cemetery the name of the deceased person interred in each burial space in the Centralia Cemetery.
[Ord. No. 835 § 1, 12-13-1965; Ord. No. 1454 § 1, 9-19-1988; Ord. No. 1508 § 2, 11-20-1989; Ord. No. 2478 § 1, 8-20-2007]
The issuance of a permit under Section 6-1 or Section 6-5 shall be for the purpose of interment or disinterment, as hereinafter provided, and shall not authorize the holder thereof to dig a grave or dig into a burial space in the Centralia Cemetery. Only persons designated and approved by the Board of Aldermen shall be authorized to dig graves or dig into burial spaces in the Centralia Cemetery. A licensed funeral director shall be present and shall personally supervise an interment service, cremation service, or other like burial or disinterment of a dead body or the cremated remains of a dead body, unless the person having the right to control the incidents of burial or disinterment of such dead body under Section 194.119, RSMo., requests or determines otherwise.
[Ord. No. 835 § 3, 12-13-1965; Ord. No. 1306 § 3, 4-21-1986]
From the fee charged for the permit issued under Section 6-1 of the City shall pay the expense of digging and covering the grave and restoring the ground level. Any cribbing or pumping of water from the grave shall be the responsibility of the City, but the City has no responsibility for the placing of tents above the grave or the furnishing of lowering devices or other paraphernalia used in the actual conduct of the portion of the funeral conducted at the cemetery.
[Ord. No. 835 § 4, 12-13-1965; Ord. No. 1306 § 4, 4-21-1986]
The Mayor, with the advice and consent of a majority of the
members of the Board of Aldermen, shall appoint a suitable person
as Cemetery Sexton. The Cemetery Sexton shall serve at the pleasure
of the Mayor and the Board of Aldermen. The Cemetery Sexton shall
hold office until his successor is appointed and qualified. Any salary
paid to the Cemetery Sexton shall be fixed by ordinance of the Board
of Aldermen.
[Ord. No. 835 § 5, 12-13-1965; Ord. No. 1306 § 6, 4-21-1986; Ord. No. 1508 § 4, 11-20-1989; Ord. No. 1711 § 2, 11-16-1992; Ord. No. 1720 § 1, 12-21-1992]
No person shall disinter a dead body or the cremated remains of a dead body from the Centralia Cemetery without a permit therefor, which shall be on the same form as the interment permit but which shall be clearly marked as a disinterment permit. The fee for the disinterment permit shall be fifty dollars ($50.00), which money shall be deposited by the Cemetery Sexton in the Cemetery Operating Fund referred to in Section 6-27. The excavation necessary for disinterment shall be performed or contracted to be performed by the person desiring disinterment and shall be under the direction of the person authorized by the Board of Aldermen to dig into burial spaces in the Centralia Cemetery. The costs for disinterment shall be the responsibility of the person to whom the permit to disinter is issued, except that the City shall fill the grave space and restore the ground surface after the disinterment is complete. Any person desiring to disinter a dead body or the cremated remains of a dead body shall also comply with the provisions of Section 194.105 and Section 214.208, RSMo., before disinterment shall be permitted by the City. Written evidence of compliance with those statutes shall be provided to the City before disinterment shall be allowed.
[1]
State Law Reference — As to removal from cemetery of
disinterred bodies, see RSMo., §§ 194.105 and 214.208.
[Ord. No. 835 § 6, 12-13-1965]
No permit for disinterment shall be issued at such time as the
ground is so wet that unusual damage will be done to surrounding graves
and area in making the excavation.
[Ord. No. 1454 § 2, 9-19-1988; Ord. No. 2238 § 1, 5-19-2003; Ord.
No. 2726 § 1, 5-20-2013]
All burial spaces hereafter sold in the Centralia Cemetery, and in any addition to the Centralia Cemetery, shall be sold for cash at a consideration of three hundred dollars ($300.00) per space. (There are five (5) spaces in one (1) lot.) The City shall give the purchaser thereof the Warranty Deed to such space, signed by the Mayor and City Clerk and having the City's Seal affixed thereto; provided, that no monument or grave marker of any kind shall be placed on such space until a permit is issued by the Cemetery Sexton setting forth the restrictions and procedures to follow as provided for in Section 6-17 in placing a concrete apron and monument or grave marker on the space. Such restrictions shall be placed in the Deed. There shall be no charge for such permit. The Code Enforcement Officer shall inspect the space before any concrete is poured for the apron. It shall be unlawful to place a concrete apron and/or a monument or grave marker on a space in violation of the restrictions and procedures or without said inspection taking place first. Persons who violate the restrictions and procedures or who place the concrete apron and/or a monument or grave marker on a space without the inspection required above shall remove any such item placed in violation of the above provision, upon request of the Cemetery Sexton. If the item is not removed within ten (10) days after request is made by the Cemetery Sexton, the City may remove the item at the violator's cost. If an item must be removed because of a violation, a new permit shall be obtained before further work is performed.
[Ord. No. 451 § 7, 4-2-1951; Ord.
No. 1454 § 3, 9-19-1988]
The form of Warranty Deed to be delivered to the purchaser of
all spaces or lots shall be approved from time to time by the Board
of Aldermen.
[Ord. No. 835 § 7, 12-13-1965; Ord. No. 1508 § 3, 11-20-1989; Ord. No. 1711 § 3, 11-16-1992]
For burial of a dead body, the grave shall be a minimum depth
of five (5) feet and of sufficient dimensions to receive the casket
and vault or other outside container and leave at least twenty-four
(24) inches between the top of the outside container and ground level;
except that a grave for an infant forty-eight (48) inches or less
in length need not be five (5) feet deep, provided that at least twenty-four
(24) inches of cover remains between the outside container and ground
level. For the cremated remains of a dead body, the cremated remains
shall be buried at a sufficient depth so that the remains are buried
at least twelve (12) inches below ground level except for those remains
buried in a container that is specially designed to have a plaque
above the remains situated at ground level. No grave shall be dug
that shall be of greater size than will fit on a single burial space.
In special circumstances, the Cemetery Sexton, with the concurrence
of the Mayor, may allow deviations from any requirement of this Section
so long as no other graves are harmed thereby.
[Ord. No. 835 § 8, 12-13-1965; Ord. No. 1111 § 1, 1-9-1978]
No person shall operate any machinery off the surfaced roadways
in the Centralia Cemetery except mowers and mechanical grave diggers
and such machinery as can be carried by hand. No vehicles shall be
operated upon the surfaced roadways in excess of ten (10) miles per
hour.
[Ord. No. 835 § 1, 12-13-1965]
No person shall haul over or drive or propel any vehicle over
any of the private lots or the walkways within the Centralia Cemetery.
[Ord. No. 1087 § 1, 3-15-1977]
Any ordinance or rule to the contrary notwithstanding, a mechanical
grave digger may be used in the City Cemetery under a special permit
issued for that purpose by the City Administrator, such permit to
be limited to one (1) grave and to any conditions stated therein set
by the City Administrator.
[Ord. No. 835 § 10, 12-13-1965]
No person shall write upon, cut, bruise, break, discolor or
otherwise deface or injure any stone, monument, fence or other structure
within or around the Cemetery.
[1]
State Law Reference — See RSMo., § 574.085
[Ord. No. 835 § 11, 12-13-1965]
No firearms shall be discharged in the Centralia Cemetery except
at military funerals or upon special memorial occasions conducted
by responsible organizations.
[Ord. No. 835 § 12, 12-13-1965]
No obscene, profane, loud or indecent language shall be allowed
in the Cemetery at any time.
[Ord. No. 835 § 14, 12-13-1965; Ord. No. 2480 § 1, 8-20-2007]
It shall be unlawful for any person to be inside the premises
of the Centralia Cemetery between the hours of 10:00 P.M. and 6:00
A.M. the following day, unless written permission is given by the
Mayor, Cemetery Sexton, Chief of Police or City Administrator for
certain persons to be inside the Centralia Cemetery during some or
all of those hours, or unless the Board of Aldermen, by resolution,
provides that all persons may be inside the Centralia Cemetery during
some or all of the hours for certain specified days. Notice of this
ordinance provision shall be given by the posting of one (1) or more
signs.
[Ord. No. 835 § 13, 12-13-1965]
No person shall pick flowers or break or cut any flower, shrub
or tree which is not his own property in the Cemetery at any time.
[Ord. No. 339 § 2, 1-6-1947; Ord.
No. 732 § 1, 1-12-1960; Ord. No. 1492 § 1, 7-17-1989; Ord.
No. 1711 § 4, 11-16-1992; Ord. No. 2072 § 2, 5-17-1999; Ord.
No. 2158 § 1, 7-16-2001]
A.
All spaces or lots sold after January 6, 1947, in the Centralia Cemetery and in any addition to the Centralia Cemetery shall be sold subject to the following restrictions, which are required to be followed as provided for in Section 6-7:
Every monument or grave marker shall be placed upon a concrete
apron (concrete base) that is even with ground level and which shall
extend beyond the perimeter of the monument or grave marker for a
distance of four (4) inches on all sides. The concrete apron shall
be at least thirty (30) inches below ground level, with no additional
reinforcement required if the foundation is four (4) feet or less
in length. The foundation will be flat across the bottom with square
corners. For foundations longer than four (4) feet there shall be
one (1) No. 4 reinforcing steel bar for each six (6) inches of width
in the longitudinal direction two (2) inches from the bottom of poured
concrete and the same two (2) inches from the top of the poured concrete.
No obstruction such as fence, tree, shrubbery shall be planted or
otherwise shall be placed on said space or lot, the purpose being
to provide a uniform and flat surface for ideal mowing and maintenance.
For those spaces or lots sold after January 6, 1947, in the Centralia
Cemetery and in any addition to the Centralia City Cemetery, there
shall be no limitation upon the height of monuments or grave markers
placed thereon. No other monuments or grave markers may be placed
on a space or lot for an individual grave in addition to the first
(1st) monument or grave marker. All monuments and grave markers located
on a space or lot shall be at the head of the grave. Any second (2nd)
grave marker designating the burial or cremated remains or designating
the person buried as a veteran of the armed forces of the United States
of America may be located adjacent to the monument or other grave
marker on a separate base, provided that the second (2nd) grave marker
is level with the ground. The base of each such second (2nd) grave
marker shall have a depth of a least eighteen (18) inches and a concrete
apron of at least four (4) inches on each side.
B.
All spaces or lots sold in the northwest and northeast sections in
the Centralia Cemetery shall be sold subject to the following restrictions:
1.
Every apron shall be installed so as to align exactly with all other
aprons in the same row. To every person installing an apron or grave
marker the Cemetery Sexton shall make available a cable and poles
to be used along with permanently installed brackets to assure said
alignment. The Cemetery Sexton may require a deposit to insure the
return of the cable and poles.
2.
Every grave marker or monument shall be erected on the west end of
a space or lot. The name and dates of birth and death shall be placed
on the east side of the monument, facing a rising sun, or on the grave
marker so that it may be read from the east end of the space or lot.
3.
No footstones or cornerstones shall be allowed. Any second (2nd)
grave marker shall be placed adjacent to and east of the first (1st)
grave marker in the manner described in Subsection (A) above.
4.
Except for cremated remains, all dead bodies shall be buried in a
vault or in a concrete or steel liner so as to prevent future subsidence
of the grave.
C.
Warranty deeds to all spaces or lots sold after January 6, 1947,
shall have printed therein the specifications for construction of
the concrete apron, as specified in Subsection (A) above. Warranty
deeds to all spaces or lots sold in the northwest and northeast sections
of the Centralia Cemetery also shall have printed therein the additional
requirements as specified in Subsection (B) above.
[Ord. No. 602 § 5, 7-1-1957; Ord.
No. 1711 § 5, 11-16-1992]
In addition to Perpetual Care Cemetery Fund provided in Section 6-23, the City may accept any gift or donation from the owner of any lot or space in the Centralia Cemetery, either for construction thereon of a mausoleum or otherwise, to be held by the City in trust for the perpetual maintenance and care of any space or lot specifically designated by the donor of such gift or donation; provided, that the acceptance of any such gift or donation shall not be mandatory upon the City and may be refused if the restrictions on the investment thereof or any other conditions attached hereto shall be deemed unreasonable by the Board of Aldermen, or if the administration of such gift or donation might, in the judgment of the Board of Aldermen, become onerous and a burden to the City; provided further, that the acceptance of any such gift or donation shall not constitute an undertaking on the part of the City to devote any other City funds to the maintenance and care of such space or lot in the event that the income from such investment or gift or donation shall prove insufficient for the maintenance and care thereof, other than the general undertaking heretofore assumed by the City in the establishment of the Perpetual Care Cemetery Fund. Any such gift or donation which may be accepted by the City as aforesaid shall be held and kept separate and apart from all other Funds of the City and there shall be no commingling of such Cemetery Trust Funds unless specific authority therefor to be granted by the donor thereof. If the donor shall not otherwise specify, the Fund shall be invested in the same manner as is provided for the investment of the Perpetual Care Cemetery Fund; provided, that in each case the acceptance of any such gift by the City shall be contingent upon written agreement being executed by the donor stipulating the terms and conditions, if any, of the gift, and all such gifts or donations shall be deemed irrevocable.
[Ord. No. 1711 § 6, 11-16-1992]
The Cemetery Sexton, with the concurrence of the City Administrator,
may authorize, without charge, a burial space in the Centralia Cemetery
and/or an interment permit for the interment of an indigent person
in that burial space or in a burial space in the Centralia Cemetery
that the indigent person owns at death, provided that said indigent
person was a resident of the City at the time of death and the indigent
person does not own a burial space in any other cemetery at the time
of death. A person shall be considered indigent if the Cemetery Sexton
and City Administrator determine that the person owns less than two
hundred fifty dollars ($250.00) in assets at the time of death (including
life insurance proceeds) and that there is no relative who had legal
responsibility for the support of the person while alive who has the
financial ability to pay for the cost of a burial space and/or the
interment fee. The City shall have the right to recover the usual
charge and fee for the burial space and/or interment permit from the
indigent person's estate if the City later determines that the
indigent person's assets exceeded two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00)
at the time of death.
