[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Irondequoit 5-18-2021 by L.L. No. 3-2021. Amendments noted where applicable.]
It is the purpose of this chapter to regulate the Irondequoit
Cemetery.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
A lot, niche, crypt, plot or part thereof in the Irondequoit
Cemetery used for burial purposes.
Ashes or other residue recovered after the completion of
the cremation of remains.
A lot in which human remains have been interred.
The disposition of human remains by inurnment, entombment
or ground burial.
Letter transferring burial rights and/or bury over rights
in cemetery property to a person(s) other than the owner.
A parcel of land within the Irondequoit Cemetery which entitles
the owner thereof to a burial place only, subject to the provisions
of this chapter and all applicable laws and regulations.
An upright memorial, including large structures like obelisks,
usually made from granite.
A space within a columbarium or mausoleum used or intended
to be used for the interment of cremains of a deceased person.
The person or persons having purchased rights to use cemetery
property in the Irondequoit Cemetery.
The Town of Irondequoit.
A receptacle designed to contain human cremains.
A.
In addition to the regulations herein, the Irondequoit Cemetery shall
be governed by the applicable laws of the State of New York and in
furtherance of Article 17 of the New York State Town Law.
B.
The Commissioner of Public Works or his or her designee, or other
such person as may be appointed by the Town Board, shall act as Cemetery
Commissioner, to oversee all matters related to the control, care,
management and maintenance of the Town cemeteries.
C.
The Town shall have the right to lay, maintain, operate, or alter
infrastructure and/or use any property within the Irondequoit Cemetery
that has not been sold to an owner in furtherance of cemetery purposes.
D.
Town cemeteries and all lots sold in accordance with the provisions
of the laws of New York State shall not be used for any other purpose
than a burial place for dead human beings.
A.
Cemetery Commissioner.
(1)
The Cemetery Commissioner or his or her designee shall act as the
caretaker of the Irondequoit Cemetery.
(2)
The Cemetery Commissioner shall report any acts of vandalism or encroachments
to the Town Board.
(3)
The Cemetery Commissioner or his or her designee shall supervise
and, in his or her reasonable discretion, may approve or deny any
improvement or embellishments made to any lot or cemetery property.
(4)
The Cemetery Commissioner or his or her designee reserves the right
to authorize and cause the following:
(a)
Removal of flowers, wreaths, or other decorations from lots
as soon as they become unsightly;
(b)
Remove any existing tree or shrub that covers any stone marker
or any upkeep growth that is not maintained;
(c)
To prune, remove, or transplant any existing tree, shrub, or
planting as deemed necessary or appropriate by the Cemetery Commissioner
or his or her designee.
(5)
The Cemetery Commissioner, or his or her designee, is authorized
in his or her reasonable discretion to resolve all ambiguities or
inconsistencies of this chapter, and to approve or deny in his or
her reasonable discretion any application not contemplated in this
chapter.
B.
Removal of grass. The Cemetery Commissioner shall provide for the
removal of grass and weeds from cemetery property as frequently as
is required by Article 17 of the New York Town Law.
C.
Fences. The Cemetery Commissioner shall cause suitable fences to
be erected and maintained around the Irondequoit Cemetery.
A.
The price for use of burial lots and all interment spaces shall be
fixed as set forth herein, and no person shall take possession of
such lot or interment space, nor make any improvements or encroachments
thereon, until the price of such lot or interment space has been paid
for in full.
B.
Cemetery property or parts thereof shall be indivisible absent the
prior written consent of the owner and the Cemetery Commissioner and
shall be subject to approval by the Town Board.
C.
A deceased person shall have the right of interment in any cemetery
property of which he or she was the owner or co-owner at the time
of his or her death. The remains of a spouse, parent, or child of
an owner or co-owner of cemetery property may be interred therein
with the consent of the owner or a majority of the co-owners.
A.
General burial rights and restrictions.
(1)
No interment shall be allowed without a state-approved burial permit.
(2)
The remains of only one person shall be allowed in a single lot,
except for spaces specifically intended for multiple burials and so
designated by the Town Board.
(3)
Concrete vaults or interment liners shall be required for all casket
interments in interments located in the Irondequoit Cemetery.
(4)
The interment of cremated remains will be permitted only in appropriate
rigid receptacles such as metal, plastic, or concrete.
(5)
No grave shall be permitted to have more than three interments.
B.
Owners shall conform to the overall aesthetic of the Irondequoit
Cemetery grounds, which is intended to provide an atmosphere of dignity,
tranquility, and somber repose. This includes, but is not limited
to, the following:
(1)
Monuments must be made of granite or similar color stone.
(2)
An owner of a lot may decorate within the width of the headstone
or interment marking plus one foot in the front thereof. The remainder
of the lot must consist of grass covering.
(3)
The Cemetery Commissioner is authorized to deny, in his or her reasonable
discretion, any improvement or embellishment that disrupts the dignity,
tranquility, and somber atmosphere of the Irondequoit Cemetery, including,
but not limited to, permanent improvements with bright and unmuted
use of the colors orange, yellow, green, and blue. For the sake of
clarity, this provision shall not bar the use of temporary flags,
flowers, and similar embellishments.
C.
All foundations, headstones, plantings, plaques and interment markers,
and placement thereof, and other work shall be constructed as approved
and directed by the Cemetery Commissioner.
D.
All interment openings and closings, burials and removals shall be
at all times subject to the approval of the Cemetery Commissioner
in accordance with local, New York State and federal laws.
E.
Interments shall be dug only by the caretaker, the Cemetery Commissioner,
his or her designee, or persons acting under the direction of such
person.
F.
Ownership interest.
(1)
An owner of cemetery property shall have the right of interment and
to the right to place appropriate interment space markings, subject
to the rules and conditions established by this chapter and applicable
laws. In addition, lot owners shall have the right to erect private
mausoleum, columbarium, or monuments, subject to the rules and conditions
established by this chapter and applicable laws.
(2)
Ownership of cemetery property shall not mean ownership of fee, meaning
owners shall not own the land or an interest in the land.
G.
Removals.
(1)
Removal of remains from an interment, crypt, niche or other interment
space may only be made after meeting the following conditions:
(2)
Notwithstanding any provision herein, an order of a court of competent
jurisdiction requiring the exhumation, disentombment or disinterment
shall be sufficient to permit removal.
H.
Cremains and right of bury over.
(1)
A cremains vault or marble urn is required for burial of cremains.
(2)
Bury over.
(a)
All interment of cremains over or alongside a previous interment
("bury over") must be approved by the Cemetery Commissioner or his
or her designee.
(b)
The interment location requested for bury over must be identified
to the Cemetery Commissioner.
(c)
An applicant for a bury over must have a letter of transfer
signed and notarized by the owner of cemetery property or the surviving
next of kin of the owner of cemetery property if the owner is deceased.
(d)
Only two cremains are allowed per existing interment for bury
over.
All Irondequoit Cemetery fees shall be established and may be
amended from time to time by resolution of the Town Board.
