Cemetery & Parks Department

515-386-4173

Cemetery Hours: The cemetery is open to visitors at all times.

Adult Supervision: A child or children under twelve (12) years of age should be accompanied by an adult.

Refreshments Not Allowed: Persons or picnic parties with refreshments are not allowed.

Unauthorized Firearms Not Allowed: Firearms will be allowed in the cemetery only at military funerals, military displays honoring the dead, or in the possession of a Police Officer.

Visitor Guidelines: Visitors are required to use the walkways and drives and shall not trespass on cemetery lots.

Trespassing and Vandalism Not Allowed: Any person who trespasses upon a cemetery under the jurisdiction of the City by defacing, damaging, destroying or removing any grave marker or other form of notification identifying the location of the deceased, grave, burial, or other form of interment; any grounds or vegetation (flower, shrub, tree, etc.); physical improvements (fence, gate, sidewalk, etc.); anything in or belonging to the cemetery, is guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be liable for any and all damage.

Speed Limit: Vehicles traveling within a cemetery shall proceed at a speed not to exceed 10 miles per hour.

Cemetery cleanup: Spring Clean up (2 weeks after Memorial Day), Fall Clean up (typically during the first two weeks of November). Everything is to be removed except things in permanent vases. The City reserves the right to remove and destroy any flowers, wreaths, emblem, or other decorative items as deemed necessary by the Cemetery Operator. No trees, shrubs or flowers may be planted on graves. The Cemetery Operator is the only authorized authority to determine permanent landscaping or planting of trees, shrubs, and flowers, in the cemetery.

Sale of Lots: Each city cemetery shall be divided into lots. A plat of these lots shall be made and kept on file in the office of the City Clerk. A person purchasing a lot shall receive a deed for the lot from the City upon the payment of the purchase price. If available, the buyer of the lot will provide name of the individual to be buried in the lot. The deed to the lot shall be issued under the seal of the City. A cemetery lot shall be used for burial purposes only in accordance with any applicable rules and regulations of the City or the state. Unless special permission is granted by the City’s Cemetery Operator, no interment shall be permitted or a memorial placed in or on any lot not paid for in full. No right of interment shall be granted to any lot owner in any road, drive, alley, or walkway within the cemetery.

Resale of a Lot by the Owner: The City does not repurchase lots previously sold. A lot owner or their heirs may request and sign a transfer document available at City Hall placing their lot “for sale”. The transfer document, when fully executed and filed at City Hall, becomes the new deed for the cemetery lot. The purchase price for the transferred lot is between the seller and the buyer and is totally independent from the city in all respects.

Maintenance of Grave Markers: Maintenance of the cemetery does not include repairs to a headstone, tombstone, monument, or other indicator (hereafter, “grave markers”) to individually identify a deceased.

Foundations: All grave markers shall be set on a foundation. The foundation for a monument shall be concrete and shall be not less then 42 inches in depth. The base area of the foundation shall be sufficient to support the weight of the monument and foundation at 500 psf assuming a soil strength of at least 2000 psf. Concrete Quality/Placement of Foundations: Concrete mix design: 4000 psi with air entrainment must be used. Use of Sakrete is not allowed. Only granite foundation caps may be used. Granite caps must have a 5-inch minimum wash (flange). Concrete caps are not allowed. The foundation shall be installed by the Cemetery Operator or a contractor hired for that purpose. Costs for the foundation must be paid in full prior to the foundation being installed. The contractor shall remove any work for any of the following reasons: (1) foundations placed without the approval/supervision of the Cemetery Operator; (2) foundations constructed of non-approved materials or mix designs; (3) foundations showing evidence of deterioration or failure during a period of four years after installation.

Interment Number of Cremated Human Remains: Interment in one grave shall be limited to two cremated adult human remains, except in the case of a parent and/or infant child or infant children.

Interment Number of Human Bodies and Cremated Human Remains: Interment in one grave shall be limited to one human body (full-body burial) and one cremated adult, child or infant human remains, except in the case of a parent and/or infant child or infant children.

For more information contact City Hall at 515-386-3111.

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