Editor's Note: Prior ordinance history includes portions
of 1957 Code §§ 21.1 — 21.15 and Ordinance
Nos. 453, 470, 480, 484, 524, 539, 578 and 627.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
Riverview Cemetery and/or Hillside Memory Gardens Cemetery.
Riverview Cemetery, St. Joseph's Cemetery, St. Joseph's
Cemetery First Addition, St. Joseph's Cemetery North Addition,
Green Acres Addition, and all present and future contiguous additions
thereto.
The person appointed by the Board of City Commissioners serving
until such appointment is revoked by same.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001; Ord. No. 857, 9-10-2002; amended 6-25-2019 by Ord. No. 1104]
A Cemetery Board of five residents of the City is hereby created,
and the duties of the Cemetery Board shall be to generally superintend
and exercise control under the Board of City Commissioners over the
cemetery. The Cemetery Board shall hold at least six meetings a year
and shall make recommendations to the Board of City Commissioners
as it deems necessary and advisable, and the members thereof shall
serve without pay. The terms of the Cemetery Board members shall be
for three-year periods. The appointments to the Board shall be made
in such a manner as to stagger the terms so one member's term
expires each year. This shall be done upon resignation or expiration
of the terms of the existing members or may be done by voluntary consent
of all the existing members by drawing for a one-, two- or three-year
term.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
The sexton shall have the general superintending jurisdiction
over the cemetery, and it shall be the sexton's duty to enforce
all of the rules and regulations in this chapter. Subject to the provisions
of this chapter, the sexton shall have the power to make such reasonable
rules and regulations, approved by the Board of City Commissioners,
that the sexton may deem necessary with reference to the use, care
and improvement of the cemetery. The sexton, subject to the approval
of the Board of City Commissioners, may employ such assistants as
may be required for the operation and management of the cemetery.
The Board of City Commissioners would determine chain of command (department
head).
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
(a)
The City will take every reasonable precaution to protect the property
of lot owners within the cemetery, but it specifically disclaims all
responsibility for loss or damage, whether direct or collateral, from
the acts of thieves, vandals, rioters, and malicious mischief-makers;
from all acts of Providence, including winds, tornadoes, cyclones,
hail, snow, frost, fire, explosion or lightning; and from breakage
or accident to equipment of whatsoever kind and character and from
all causes beyond its reasonable control.
(b)
The City shall not be held responsible for inaccuracies or mistakes
occurring as a result of orders taken via telephone, or for any mistakes
occurring for lack of precise and complete instructions as to the
particular space, size and location in the plot where interment is
desired.
(c)
The City reserves the right to correct any errors resulting in misdescription,
improper transfer of burial rights, duplication of transfer of burial
rights, surveying errors, improper placement of interments, and improper
disinterments and removals. Corrections may include, but not limited
to, canceling of conveyance or assignment and substituting in lieu
thereof other interment property of equal value and similar location
as far as possible or as may be selected by the City, or, in the sole
discretion of the City, by refunding the amount of money paid on account
of said purchase.
(d)
In the event the error shall involve the interment of the remains
of any person in such property, the City reserves and shall have the
right to remove and reinter the remains to such property of equal
value and similar location as may be substituted and transferred in
lieu thereof.
(e)
In the event of correction pursuant to this section, notice to the
owner or to the immediate family shall be given by certified mail
at the last known address of such party.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
The cemetery shall be maintained as a burial ground for residents
of the City of Williston and nonresidents.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
(a)
Lot owners, their families and visitors will be admitted daily and
are required to observe all rules adopted for the regulation of visitors.
(b)
Persons under the age of 15, unattended by persons who will be responsible
for their conduct, will not be admitted.
(c)
Bicycle riding shall be permitted on road surfaces only.
(d)
Bicycles must not be leaned up against stone work of any kind.
(e)
Automobiles must proceed within the posted speed limits and be kept
under complete control at all times.
(f)
Refreshments, liquors or drugs will not be allowed on the grounds.
(g)
No person with firearms or dogs (other than dogs used by the sight
impaired) will be permitted on the premises.
(h)
Discharging of firearms, other than regular volleys at burial services,
is prohibited in and around the cemetery grounds.
(i)
Trucks and vehicles of cumbersome description will not be allowed
to enter the grounds without special permission of the sexton. No
vehicles (except grave digging equipment) will be permitted off the
established roadways in the cemetery without the permission of the
sexton.
(j)
All persons are prohibited from plucking any plants, whether wild
or cultivated, breaking any tree or shrub, marring any stone work
or in any way defacing the property of lot owners or of the City.
(k)
To prevent injury to adjoining lots and to preserve the beauty of
the grounds, no trees, shrubs or plants shall be planted in the cemetery,
nor shall any existing trees, shrubs or plants be cut down, removed
or trimmed except by permission of and under the direction of the
sexton.
(l)
No improper use of the national flag will be permitted in the cemetery,
nor will the display of any worn out and tattered flag be allowed.
(m)
Vases not properly cared for will be removed from the cemetery grounds.
(n)
The decoration of graves shall be limited to the placing of wreaths,
sprays, or flower boxes and the placing of cut flowers shall be restricted
to those graves which have a regular container for that purpose. The
use of jars, tin cans, etc., is prohibited. Decorations placed on
the grave site, other than listed above, or temporary markers may
be removed by the sexton or the sexton's designee for the purpose
of mowing or other maintenance duties.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
(a)
Persons desiring to purchase burial rights shall visit the cemetery
where the sexton will assist in making a selection.
(b)
Lots in the cemetery are to be conveyed by burial right to the purchaser,
his family and heirs, a right forever for the purpose of burying the
human dead, subject to the rules and regulations that are now in force
or may be adopted by the City, but exempt from taxation and liability
for debt.
(c)
No burial right will be issued until a lot is fully paid for, and
if interment is permitted before such time, the City retains the right
to refuse future interments or any improvements until any balance
due on such lots is fully paid, and in case of persistent default,
to remove any remains already interred to the single grave section.
When lots are purchased for pre-need, the lots need to be paid-in-full
at time of purchase.
(d)
A burial right document and its record on the books of the City kept
under the direction of the City Auditor is the only evidence of ownership
of the proprietor recognized by the City; therefore, no lot shall
be subdivided or transferred except with permission of the sexton
and upon recording the same with the City Auditor. In the event of
subdivision or transfer or other use of such rights contrary to the
provisions of this chapter, the whole of such rights shall revert
to the City.
(e)
The City authorizes the sexton to repurchase lots and burial rights
in the name of the City when desired by the owner. The price shall
be negotiated by the parties but may not exceed the current price
of burial rights.
(f)
No burial rights will be issued for ground that has not been surveyed
and platted.
(g)
On the death of an owner or part owner of a lot, the heirs or devisees
of the deceased, if required, shall file in the office of the City
Auditor satisfactory proof of their heirship for the purpose of establishing
the new ownership in the books of the City.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
(a)
When the buyer desires to purchase two or more single grave lots,
the City reserves the right to require that the selection shall be
made in such a location and manner as not to leave any isolated single
grave lots alongside those purchased.
(b)
Single grave lots shall be sold only from single grave lot sections
except as isolated single grave lots may be elsewhere available. In
single grave lot sections there can be no choice of location as these
lots must be filled in regular order, nor can any such lots be reserved
or sold for future use.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
The price of lots (burial rights), interment charges, opening
and closing of graves and disinterment shall be set by resolution
of the Board of City Commissioners.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
(a)
All charges for lots, services and devices are payable in advance
unless it is otherwise agreed, with a guarantee by an approved, responsible
person, and in no event shall the time of payment be extended beyond
30 days from the date of purchase or ordering of work done, or use
of devices.
(b)
In all instances where a mortician arranges for the purchase of a
lot or for the interment, such mortician shall assume the liability
for payments to the City of the cost of such lot or interment.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
Burial services will not be allowed on Sundays and legal holidays.
Holidays are designated as those set forth in North Dakota Century
Code § 1-03-01.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
(a)
During the period from April 15th to October 15th, orders for interments
must be given 24 hours in advance of the funerals, and such orders
must be accompanied by legal burial permits. During the period from
October 15th to April 15th, such orders must be given 48 hours in
advance of the funerals.
(b)
Charges for interment in the county plot are pursuant to state law.
(c)
The following particulars are required for record: Name of deceased,
place of birth, last residence, age, date of death, date of interment,
place of death, whether married, widowed or single, the name of the
nearest kindred, the address of the nearest kindred, and military
information pursuant to state law. No burials will be allowed without
such information.
(d)
If the order for an interment is for a deceased not of the immediate
family of the lot owner, permission in writing from such lot owner
or authorized person must be filed with the sexton.
(e)
When lots are held jointly by two or more persons, either by descent,
devise or purchase, an order will be accepted from either of them
or their heirs for interment in such lots as they shall require.
(f)
Orders for burials over the telephone will be accepted only at the
option of the sexton because of the potential for mistakes, and a
lot owner or other authorized person in ordering an interment may
be required to call at the cemetery personally to obviate the possibility
of error.
(g)
Only one interment will be allowed in one grave, except in case of
a parent and infant, or twin children, or two children buried at the
same time.
(h)
The interment of up to two cremation remains will be allowed with
an approved vault on an occupied lot or in an unoccupied lot with
written permission of the immediate family. The spreading of ashes
is not allowed in the cemetery. Cremains must receive earth burial
or columbarium interment, if available.
(i)
Funeral activities, while within the cemetery grounds, will be under
the control of the sexton.
(j)
It shall be mandatory that all rough boxes used shall be of concrete
or in the alternative steel vaults. A permanent type of outside burial
receptacle shall be required in all sections of the cemetery. Outside
receptacles made out of fiberglass shall not be permitted.
(k)
The "Garden of the Angels" is for the interment of infants and children
only with a box size opening limited to two by four feet.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
(a)
Any stone flush with ground level shall be classified as a marker.
All markers need to be installed flush with the border and the existing
ground.
(b)
Markers for use in marking graves for infants' and children's
plots must not exceed 16 inches in length or eight inches in width
with borders not to exceed three inches in width.
(c)
No permanent marker, or portion thereof, made of any material other
than granite, marble or standard bronze will be permitted for use
in the cemetery.
(d)
All markers shall be set in a concrete foundation which will provide
a four inch concrete border around the marker, such concrete border
to be flush with the level of the ground, except those markers with
pre-manufactured borders allowed in the "Garden of the Angels."
(e)
Markers shall be located at the foot of the grave except in Block
11 of Riverview Cemetery and all of Hillside Memory Gardens Cemetery
where markers shall be located at the head of the grave unless an
additional military marker is requested. Marker with border shall
be no more than two feet in width. The location of markers and all
work in connection with setting them shall be under the direction
of the sexton.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
(a)
The use of monuments is permitted in Riverview Cemetery except in
Block 11. Monuments are not permitted in Hillside Memory Gardens Cemetery.
(b)
Any stone or bronze above ground level shall be classified as a monument
but cannot exceed 42 inches in height.
(c)
All monuments shall be located at the head of the grave lot.
(d)
Grave covers or ledgers are not allowed in Williston cemeteries.
(e)
The maximum size of the monument is based upon lot size. The length
of the base shall not exceed 75% of the width of the lot.
(f)
No person shall erect or place any monument until the monument and
location have been permitted and approved by the sexton.
(g)
No monuments made of any material other than granite, marble or standard
bronze will be allowed in the cemetery. Appurtenances made of other
materials than listed above must be approved by the sexton.
(h)
The rolling of stone work across cemetery property shall not be done
without the consent and supervision of the sexton.
(i)
The turf around and near where work is to be done must always be
thoroughly protected by planks and boards when required by the sexton.
(j)
All stone work shall have the surface next to the foundation squared
so as to allow full bearing on the foundation.
(k)
Foundations shall be required for all monuments, and shall be built
so as to provide a border not less than four inches in width around
the bottom of the base of the monument and shall be adequate to permanently
support the monument in true position. Total width of monument and
base shall be no greater than 24 inches. Vases shall be installed
on the monument or base and not the foundation as the City shall not
be held responsible for damaged vases. In the case where a marker
serves as the monument, a below ground receptacle shall be provided
for the vase.
(l)
After the foundation for any monument has been set sufficiently,
as determined by the sexton, the monument shall be installed on the
foundation by a representative of the manufacturer of the particular
monument.
(m)
No person is allowed to remove any monument from the cemetery or
to alter any monument erected in the cemetery without first securing
permission from the sexton.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
(a)
Graves will be reopened for official inspection or for any other
purpose only when all statutory provisions relating to the opening
of graves have been complied with and the regular charge for disinterment
paid to the City.
(b)
Should a member of the immediate family of an interred person wish
to secure two or more laterally adjacent lots available elsewhere
in the cemetery in order to provide for contiguous burials, he may
have the body in the single lot disinterred and reinterred in the
new location by paying the regular charges for disinterment and reinterment
and by assigning the burial rights of the vacated lot to the City.
(c)
Should any single lot be vacated and the body removed from the cemetery,
the regular charge for disinterment must be paid and the right to
the lot so vacated shall revert to the City.
(d)
No disinterment, except a court ordered disinterment, will be allowed
from October 15th to April 15th unless ground conditions as determined
by the sexton allows for a disinterment.
(e)
If a disinterment is permitted, a licensed mortician must be present
to perform the final retrieval of the remains.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
(a)
Any person violating any of the prohibitions set forth in this chapter
shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to a maximum criminal
penalty of a $500 fine, 30 days imprisonment, or both such fine and
imprisonment.
(b)
The City reserves the right to pursue civil remedies for damages
caused by any party to the grounds, improvements, monuments and markers,
and vegetation on the cemetery property.
[Ord. No. 746, 11-12-1991; Ord. No. 844, 3-13-2001]
(a)
There is hereby created a perpetual care fund to be administered
by the City Auditor of the City of Williston.
(b)
The principal of the fund shall remain in trust with the interest
on said principal to be utilized as either operating funds for the
care and maintenance of the cemeteries or added to the principal for
the fund.
(c)
The City is hereby authorized to accept donations from any and all
sources to such fund.
(d)
Ten percent of the proceeds of burial rights sales as set forth in
this chapter and set by resolution of the Board of City Commissioners
shall be allocated to the principal of said fund and be subject to
the restrictions on use set forth herein.
