City of Sanford, ME Chapter 101 Cemeteries

[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of the Town of Sanford as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]

Article I Oakdale Cemetery

[Adopted 12-29-2009[1]]

[1] Editor’s Note: This ordinance also superseded former Art. I, Oakdale Cemetery, adopted 4-11-1977 as Ch. 3 of the 1977 Code, as amended.

§ 101-1 Oakdale Cemetery established.

All land purchased from Oakdale Cemetery Association situated on Berwick Road in the Town of Sanford shall be held for a perpetual burying place of the human dead and shall be known as the Oakdale Cemetery.

§ 101-2 Board of Trustees.

A. Members; appointment; term.

(1) The general care and management of the property expenditures, business and prudential affairs of said cemetery shall be in a Board of three Trustees, to include the following members: a member of the Town Council, to be appointed annually by the Town Council at the first regular meeting in January, or as soon thereafter as may be, the Town Manager or the Town Manager's designee, and the Town Treasurer.

(2) Said Board shall, on or before the first regular meeting of December in each year, make to the Town Council a full report of its doings.

B. Organization of Trustees. The Board of Trustees immediately after the first regular meeting of the Town Council shall organize by choosing from their number a Chairperson and a Secretary. The Town Treasurer shall serve as the Treasurer of the organization.

C. Grants, donations, bequests.

(1) The Board of Trustees, when so authorized by statute, may accept and hold any grant, donation, or bequest of money or property, in trust, for and in behalf of the Town of Sanford, and apply the income thereof and the principal when so stated, to the improvement and embellishment of said cemetery; or for the erection, repair, preservation or renewal of any monument or other structure; or for the planting or cultivation of trees, shrubs or plants in or around any lot or lots; or for improving said grounds in any other manner or form consistent with the purposes for which said cemetery is established, and in accordance with the terms of such grant, donation or bequest.

(2) And whenever any such grant, donation or bequest, or any deposit of money, shall be made to said Trustees, by the owner of any lot or lots, in said cemetery, for the annual or perpetual care, repair, preservation or embellishment of such lot or lots, or the erections thereon, said Trustees may give to such owner or his legal representative, when so authorized by statute, an agreement or obligation in such form and upon such conditions as they or the statute may establish, binding themselves and their successors for and in behalf of the Town of Sanford, to preserve and keep in repair said lots or lot forever, or for such period as may be agreed upon. Any sums of money so received shall be invested by them in such manner as the laws of the State provide for investing such funds.

D. Grants, donations, bequests; income. The income of such funds or fund and the principal, when so stated, shall be expended by said Board of Trustees in such manner as shall, in their opinion, best promote the purposes for which said grant donation, bequest or deposit was made.

E. Property held, how applied. All personal property now belonging to said cemetery, and the proceeds of all sales of lots, now held, or hereafter to be acquired, by said cemetery, together with all donations, bequests, and all other incomes of whatever nature, shall be forever devoted and applied, in accordance with the provisions of this article, to the preservation, improvement, embellishment, protection and enlargements of said cemetery, and to the necessary incidental expenses thereof and to no other account.

F. Payment procedure. All bills against said cemetery shall be examined and approved by at least two members of the Board of Trustees before payment.

G. Chairman. The Chairman shall preside at all meetings of the Trustees.

§ 101-3 Officers.

A. Secretary. The Secretary shall keep a correct record of all the doings of the Board of Trustees and attend to all necessary correspondence.

B. Treasurer. The Treasurer shall receive all money due and payable on account of the cemetery.

C. Treasurer; financial statement. The Treasurer shall make out and submit to the Board of Trustees a statement of the financial condition of the cemetery, which statement shall contain a detailed account of receipts and expenditures, made for and in behalf of the cemetery, whenever requested so to do by said Board.

D. Treasurer; annual statement. The Treasurer shall, annually, on June 30, make out a statement of all receipts and expenditures, and submit the same to the Town Council.

E. Treasurer; payroll. The Treasurer shall carefully examine the Superintendent's time book, and make up therefrom the payroll of all the employees of the cemetery; and, upon approval of said payroll by the Trustees, the Treasurer shall pay the same.

F. Town Treasurer; statement. It shall be the duty of the Town Treasurer to furnish the Board of Trustees, for the report required in § 101-3C, an itemized statement of the current receipts and expenditures of the Town Treasurer's office, for and in behalf of Oakdale Cemetery, for the month ending as aforesaid; which statement shall include, under the appropriate heads, any interest or other income, due from the Town to said cemetery account, by reason of any loan or invested fund.

G. Purchase Committee. The Trustees shall designate not less than two of their number to act as a committee for purchasing all necessary supplies for the cemetery.

§ 101-4 Superintendent.

A. Appointment; general duties. The Board of Trustees, at its organization or as soon thereafter as may be, shall appoint some suitable person as Superintendent of the cemetery, who, under the direction of the Trustees, shall have entire charge of the cemetery grounds. The Superintendent shall keep the avenues, paths and lots in a neat and satisfactory condition, and, upon approval of the Trustees, shall engage and discharge workmen, and order and arrange their respective duties.

B. Enforcement duty. It shall be the Superintendent's duty at all times, in connection with the Trustees, to see that the provisions of this article are faithfully and impartially enforced.

C. Rules and regulations. The Superintendent shall see that all rules and regulations of the cemetery are observed by persons employed in the cemetery, either by the Superintendent or by owners of lots; and that all regulations in regard to interments and the construction of tombs, monuments, foundations, care and improvement of lots be complied with, and cause all contracts made with owners to be fulfilled.

D. Actuarial duties; records; other.

(1) The Superintendent shall perform the duties of actuary by keeping in books or cards provided for that purpose regular and accurate records of all interments, with proper indices of the same, for immediate reference, by lot owners and others, at any time. The Superintendent shall, ex officio, be an undertaker and have all the powers of the same.

(2) The Superintendent shall keep a record in a book, or on cards properly ruled, according to the plan of said cemetery, giving the number, section, name of purchaser, price and date of every lot sold, transferred or exchanged.

(3) The Superintendent shall hold the office at the pleasure of the Board of Trustees. Subject to the provisions of this article, the Trustees may require the Superintendent to perform such other duties as they deem advisable.

§ 101-5 Cemetery funds.

A. Perpetual care fund. All sums received from bonds given by the Town or Board of Trustees for the perpetual care of lots, tombs and other structures upon any lots shall be known as the "perpetual care fund," and the income from the same shall be exclusively expended by the Trustees in maintaining, according to the terms of the various bonds given therefor, a perpetual care of said lots, tombs, and other structures.

B. General fund. The Town Treasurer shall open a cemetery account known as the "general fund" in a book kept for that purpose, in which shall be entered all moneys received for and on account of the cemetery, not including the above-mentioned funds, and all moneys so received shall be and are hereby constituted a general fund, to be used for the purpose of paying current expenses, as well as improving and ornamenting said cemetery.

C. Treasurer; report. The Town Treasurer shall, annually, make a report to the Town Council, giving a detailed statement of all receipts from and expenditures and investments of the above-mentioned funds received or made by him for the fiscal year.

§ 101-6 Purchase and sale of lots.

A. Price, certificate for sale, deed. The Trustees are authorized to determine the price and sale of lots in the cemetery, fixing such price as in their judgment the location, surroundings and condition of the same seem to warrant. The Town Treasurer, upon receipt of a certificate signed by the Trustees, giving the name or names of the purchasers, the section, number and price of the lot or lots, shall make out and deliver to such person or persons (on payment of the specified price) a deed.

B. Purchase of lots. The Trustees are hereby authorized to purchase outright or by exchange for other lots, on behalf of the Town, any unoccupied lot or lots, at such price or prices as may be agreed upon by the owner or owners and the Trustees.

C. Single graves; condition of sale.

(1) The Trustees are hereby authorized to set apart any unoccupied tract or tracts of land in the cemetery, for the purpose of selling the right of burial, in single graves, to persons who do not desire to purchase regular lots. And said Trustees are hereby empowered to adopt and regulate the price for such graves as in their judgment is just and proper. It shall be conditioned in the same of every such grave that if any person purchasing such a grave shall thereafter purchase any lot or lots in the cemetery, the body buried in such grave will be removed therefrom to the lot or lots purchased, when desired, and the price paid for the grave, less the charge for two interments, shall be credited on the lot or lots so purchased. After such removal, the space so vacated and the right to occupy the same shall revert to the Town.

(2) Single graves may be purchased in the section or sections set apart for that purpose, by the Trustees, at such price as they may determine.

D. Single graves; perpetual care. The price for a single grave shall include perpetual care.

§ 101-7 Grading of lots.

A. Uniform grade. The grade of all lots hereafter sold or exchanged shall be at a uniform grade unless otherwise determined by the Trustees. All lots shall be graded by the Town under the direction of the Trustees at such a price as may be agreed upon.

B. Restriction against; penalty. The grading of any lot in the cemetery or any changing of a grade once established by the Town, except by an employee of the cemetery acting under the direction of the Superintendent, is prohibited; and any lot owner, or his representative, who violates this section shall be liable to a fine of not less than $25 for each offense, to be recovered by complaint or an action of debt, in the name of the Trustees, for the use of the cemetery.

§ 101-8 Annual and perpetual care of lots.

A. Determination of cost; satisfactory condition. The Trustees are authorized to agree upon such a price for perpetual, annual or special care of any lot or lots by the Town, as in their judgment would be just and proper, between the Town and the owners of such lots. They may refuse to grant perpetual care upon any lot until it is put in a condition satisfactory to them.

B. Classification of care. There shall be the following classifications for the perpetual care by the Town of lots, monuments, or other structures upon lots.

(1) One.

(a) Shall include keeping the sward or turf even and in good condition, the grass properly cut and the trees and shrubbery trimmed.

(b) It may also include, if agreed upon:

[1] The necessary watering of the lot;

[2] The planting and care of flowers and shrubs; or

[3] Top dressing the land when necessary.

(2) Two. May embrace any or all the divisions enumerated in Classification One, as well as the proper care of all granite, stone, marble, bronze or other structures on the lot at the time the care is assumed, or any future erections that may be expressly specified, but not the replacing of the same.

(3) Three. Assuming the same care as in Classification Two, and, in addition, replacing when necessary such granite, stone, marble, bronze or other structures.

C. Annual care; special care.

(1) The Trustees or Superintendent may contract with lot owners or their representatives, for the care of lots by the year, on such terms as may be agreed upon, to be known as "annual care." It may embrace any or all of the provisions designated in Classification One.

(2) Special or extra care may be contracted for in writing by any lot holder, in addition to the perpetual or annual care mentioned in this and the preceding subsection.

D. Neglect of lots. If any lot or structure or growth thereon shall, by reason of the neglect or absence of the owner, become unsightly or inconvenient, the Trustees shall have the right, at their discretion, after due notice to said owner or the designated representative, to put said lot or structure in proper condition and repair, and make a reasonable charge for the same; or any structure or growth thereon or any part of it may be removed, if deemed advisable, and the expense of the same shall be charged to the owner or owners of said lot or lots. And the Trustees shall not consent to the transfer of such lot or lots until the expense for such repairs has been paid.

E. Perpetual care bond. Upon the receipt of a certificate from the Trustees setting forth the section, number and lot, owner's name and residence, together with this class of care and the price for the same, the Town Treasurer shall issue to the party or parties therein named, a bond for perpetual care of lots, upon the payment of the price agreed upon in such certificate.

F. Trusts and conveyances. Upon receipt of a properly executed deed to the Town of Sanford by any lot holder or holders in Oakdale Cemetery, conveying in trust any lot or lots in said cemetery as a place of interment for the grantor and such persons as the grantor may designate to be buried therein accompanied by a certificate from the Trustees, for the time being, of said cemetery, giving the section, number and lots, the name and residence of the grantor, together with the class of perpetual care and the price for the same, the Town Treasurer and said Trustees, for the time being, for and in behalf of the Town of Sanford may accept the conveyance of such lot or lots, for the uses and upon the trusts which may be set forth in said conveyance, and may bind the Town to keep and perform the agreements, uses and trusts, as are contained in the deed of conveyance of such lot or lots, in accordance with the laws of the State of Maine.

G. Entry privilege for upkeep of lots. No person, except a lot owner, his legal representative or an employee of the cemetery acting under the direction of the Superintendent or Trustees, shall enter Oakdale Cemetery for the purpose of caring for lots, unless by special permission or vote of the Trustees.

H. No personal interest or compensation allowed. No Trustee, Superintendent or employee of this cemetery shall be allowed to be personally interested in or receive compensation for the care of any lot, but any and all receipts for such care, unless otherwise provided, shall go into the general fund provided in § 101-5B.

§ 101-9 Boundary markers; trees and shrubs.

A. Boundary markers; lot numbers. Each lot shall be bounded or designated by posts or markers at each corner, set level with the ground, the same to be furnished by the Trustees on or before the sale of the lot. The number of the lot shall be cast or cut in a post or marker set for that purpose.

B. Removal of trees, shrubs, etc. If any tree, shrub, hedge or plant situated on any lot by means of its roots, branches or otherwise becomes unsightly or obnoxious to adjacent lot owners, or detrimental or inconvenient to avenues or paths, it shall be the duty of the Trustees to enter upon such lot and remove the same in whole or in part, at their discretion.

C. Cultivation of trees, shrubs, etc. The owner of any lot shall have a right to cultivate shrubs and plants on the same, subject to the regulations of the cemetery, but they shall not be cultivated without first obtaining permission from the Trustees.

§ 101-10 Monuments.

A. Right to erect, restriction. The owner of any lot shall have the right to erect any proper stones or a monument thereon. Only one monument shall be allowed on a lot and this must be located at the center, unless special permission is given by the Trustees for placing it otherwise. No monument will be allowed on any lot platted for less than five burials unless by special vote of the Trustees.

B. Tombs; vaults; mausoleums. Tombs, vaults or mausoleums can be constructed only in such places and upon such lots and of such a design as shall be approved by the Trustees. Complete plans and specifications of the same must be furnished when application for permission to build is made. No bodies shall be placed therein except in hermetically sealed, single apartments, in a manner satisfactory to the Trustees.

C. Materials allowed. No monument or headstone, and no portion of any vault, tomb, or mausoleum above the ground, shall be constructed of any other material than cut marble or stone or real bronze. No artificial material will be allowed.

§ 101-11 Foundations.

A. Reservation of right to construct foundations. As a guarantee of good work, for the general welfare of the cemetery, and as a protection to lot holders, the Town reserves the right to excavate for and build all foundations for monuments, headstones, etc. The Trustees may, however, if deemed advisable, authorize, under their supervision, the construction of such foundations by other parties than the Town.

B. Foundation specifications.

(1) No stone, tablet, tomb, vault or other super-structures shall be erected in Oakdale Cemetery until a suitable foundation is laid.

(2) All foundations for monuments, shall be not less than four feet deep. For all other structures, the depth of the foundation shall be at the discretion of the Trustees. Cement shall be used throughout for monument foundations.

§ 101-12 Undertakers.

A. Restriction on removal or deposit for burial; penalty. No person, except a licensed undertaker or the Superintendent acting as such, shall remove to or deposit for burial in Oakdale Cemetery any body of a deceased person; and any person violating this subsection shall be liable to a fine of not less than $50 for each offense, to be recovered as in § 101-7B.

B. Notification requirements; record.

(1) It shall be the duty of every undertaker, who shall hereafter remove to Oakdale Cemetery any body of a deceased person for burial or for deposit in the receiving tomb, to first notify the Superintendent of the burials, upon a blank for that purpose, furnished by the Superintendent of the cemetery, giving the name, age, late residence and nature of the disease of which such person died; and, if buried, the section, number and name of the lot owner upon whose lot such burial is made; and, if the body is placed in the receiving tomb to await burial, it shall be so stated upon such return.

(2) In addition to the above, the date of such deposits and when such body will be removed for burial, the number and lot holder's name to which it is to be removed shall be given. And the Trustees shall cause a record of every such notice and return to be kept at the Superintendent's office, for the use and information of the cemetery.

C. Hours for burial and deposit. No body of a deceased person shall hereafter be removed to Oakdale Cemetery, either for burial or deposit in the receiving tomb, except between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., without permission of the Trustees.

§ 101-13 Burials or interments.

A. Conformance with law; fees. No burial shall be permitted in any lot in the cemetery until the laws regarding burials in force in the Town of Sanford have been complied with, and all burial fees paid.

B. Permission required. No body shall be buried in any lot in the cemetery for hire nor except on the written permission of the lot owner or his designated representative filed in the office of the Superintendent 12 hours before such interment. The Trustees, at their discretion, may permit such interment when unable to get the permission above mentioned.

C. Burial on Town-owned lots; failure to purchase. Burials are prohibited upon any lot the title to which is in the Town of Sanford, but the Trustees, by written consent, may allow burials to be made, for a stated period, on such lots when the persons or person interested shall contract to purchase the lot or lots so buried upon. And it shall be stipulated in such contract that if such person or persons shall fail to purchase within the time specified, the Trustees may, after 30 days from the date of a notice to that effect to the person or persons interested, cause such body or bodies to be removed to a single grave section, at the expense of the person or persons for whom such burials were made.

§ 101-14 Receiving tomb.

A. Contagious remains; public vault. The remains of a person dying of cholera, scarlet fever, diphtheria, small pox, typhus or yellow fever, or any other recognized contagious disease, shall not be allowed in the public vault, unless same is sealed in an airtight receptacle.

B. Contagious remains, restriction on removal. Should the remains of any person dying of any disease mentioned in the preceding section, be buried in any lot or section of Oakdale Cemetery, such remains shall not be removed within two years from the date of such interment.

C. Temporary winter placement. Persons not owning lots may, during the winter months on payment of such sum as may be determined upon by the Trustees, have a body placed in the receiving tomb for a term not exceeding three months. All bodies deposited in the receiving tomb shall be removed therefrom on or before the fifteenth day of May, annually, unless allowed to remain longer by special permission of the Trustees.

§ 101-15 Visitors' unruly conduct; penalty.

Any person who shall be found within the limits of the grounds making unseemly noise, discharging firearms, driving at a rapid rate on the avenues throwing stones or other missiles, or otherwise conducting themselves in a manner unsuitable to the purposes to which the grounds are dedicated or in violation of any ordinance or regulation of the cemetery shall be liable to a fine of not less than $10.

§ 101-16 Rules and regulations; violations and penalties.

A. Rules and regulations. The Trustees are hereby empowered to adopt such rules and regulations as may be necessary for the government of said cemetery, as long as the same are not inconsistent with the ordinances of the Town and the laws of the State.

B. Enforcement; penalty. Whoever violates any provisions of this article, unless otherwise provided by this article or the laws of this State shall be punished, upon conviction, by a fine not exceeding $500, the same to be recovered as provided in § 101-7B.

§ 101-17 Special area for servicemen.

The Trustees shall set aside a section of the cemetery for the burial of servicemen of all wars who have no relatives who might provide a plot for the interment of their remains. The area has previously been selected and some veterans already interred therein. The Trustees shall establish rules and regulations to govern under which conditions of burials therein will be authorized.