[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of
the City of Lexington by Ord. No.
05-4 (Ch. 6 of the 1970 Code). Amendments noted
where applicable.]
[Amended 9-3-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-09]
It shall be unlawful for any person to disfigure,
break or mutilate any tombstone, gravestone, marker, monument, vault,
enclosure, tree, shrub or vegetation in Evergreen Cemetery or Oak
Grove Cemetery.
[Amended 9-3-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-09]
Any person or persons entering upon the land located within the confines of the Evergreen Cemetery and the Oak Grove Cemetery between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. and any person or persons found upon the premises of these cemeteries at any time without lawful business or found conducting himself or herself in a lewd, wanton or lascivious manner shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished in accordance with Chapter 1, § 1-6 of this Code.
[Amended 9-3-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-09]
It shall be unlawful for any person to deposit
trash, waste or filth in or about Evergreen Cemetery or Oak Grove
Cemetery.
[Amended 9-3-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-09]
All graves shall be dug to such depth that there
shall be at least three feet from the surface of the ground to the
top of the box.
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The advisory board of the Evergreen and Oak Grove Cemeteries.
[Amended 9-3-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-09]
The Evergreen Cemetery and the Oak Grove Cemetery, located
in the City and used or intended to be used for the interment of human
remains.
[Amended 9-3-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-09]
Any natural person who resides within the corporate limits
of the City of Lexington, Virginia, continuously for the last 12 months
next preceding the date of application, or more, with the intention
of making it his or her primary residence.
[Amended 9-3-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-09]
The names of the cemeteries regulated by this
article shall be Evergreen Cemetery and Oak Grove Cemetery.
A superintendent for the cemeteries as a department
of the City shall be selected and employed by the City Manager at
such salary as may be deemed proper, who shall undertake and perform
all duties which may be assigned by the City Manager.
The cemetery shall be under the direct supervision
and control of the City Council acting through the office of the City
Manager which shall act on recommendations made by the Board.
A.
Establishment; designation; composition; authority.
There is hereby established an advisory board to be known as the "Advisory
Board of the Evergreen and Oak Grove Cemeteries" which shall consist
of six members, appointed by City Council, as provided in this section.
[Amended 9-3-2020 by Ord. No. 2020-09]
B.
Terms of members. Members of the Advisory Board appointed,
as provided in this section, shall hold office for terms of two years
commencing on August 31 or until their successors are appointed and
qualified; half of the Board shall be appointed during an even year
and the other half during in an odd year.
C.
Chairperson and Secretary; executive committee. The
Advisory Board shall elect two officers, a Chairperson and a Secretary,
who shall perform such duties as the Board may direct. The Board may
elect an executive committee with authority to act on behalf of the
full Board.
D.
Duties and powers.
(1)
Generally. It shall be the duty of the Advisory Board
to advise City Council and make recommendations on the operations
of the cemetery.
(2)
Determination of policies, costs, etc. The Board may
recommend to City Council policies of the cemetery operations, the
cost of interment, the price of lots, the cost of perpetual care,
the sale of lots and all other things incident or necessary to the
accomplishment of these general purposes.
(3)
Contracts; obligations; sale of lots. The Board shall
not make contracts, nor assume obligations, nor sell burial space.
(4)
Operational rules and regulations. The Board may,
from time to time, suggest to City Council rules and regulations governing
the operations of the cemetery.
A.
Perpetual Care Trust Fund. The Perpetual Care Trust
Fund will be handled by City Council as a separate account within
its control and direction, treating such account as a trust account
for the sole purpose of providing for the perpetual care of the cemetery,
or under an agency account with a depository selected by City Council
as it may elect. The purpose of the Perpetual Care Trust Fund is to
minimize the financial burden of the City in operating and maintaining
the cemeteries. In the event that the account is placed with a depository,
then such fund shall be under the direct control of such depository.
B.
Deposit and disbursement of general cemetery funds.
The general cemetery funds, including all other than the Perpetual
Care Trust Fund, shall be deposited in the City's general fund.
[Amended 6-7-2012 by Ord. No. 2012-08]
All charges for the sale of lots and the rendering of services by the City in connection with the operation of the municipal cemeteries shall be established annually by the City Council at the time of the adoption of the annual appropriation resolution. Of the sales revenues, one half of the proceeds shall be placed in the Cemetery Trust Fund. The City may adopt therein a two-tiered fee structure for the purchase of said lots and for cemetery service charges, one fee structure for City residents as defined in § 147-6 of this chapter and one for non-City residents. Further, the City shall have the right as a term of the sale of any and all cemetery lots, when offered to the City for repurchase, to repurchase said lots at the price paid for the same regardless of the then current sale price of lots.
The cemetery management may require the person
having the right of custody and control of the remains, or authorized
agent, to meet with the management at the cemetery to locate the site
at which a grave is to be opened.
The cemetery management reserves the right to
select the location of all grave plots when fewer than four grave
spaces are purchased at one time in order to maximize the space utilization
of the cemeteries.
