Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/23/24 Cemetery Board MinutesMinutes Cemetery Board Wednesday, October 23, 2024 Present: Mayor Shannon Collins, Constance Patterson, Vera Carter, John Seagle, Marcie Worrell Absent: Todd Bruce Guests: Chris Phillips Staff Present: Todd Day, Town Manager, Jackie Morris, Finance Director, Austin Painter, Engineering Department, Nathan Smythers, Building Department, Olivia Hale, Clerk of Council Mayor Collins called the meeting to order at 6:12 p.m. Approval of Minutes Ms. Carter asked to amend the July 24, 2024 minutes to include a more elaborate conversation held regarding Pinehurst. Ms. Hale stated amendments would be made and the July and October minutes could be approved at the next scheduled meeting. Financial Report Jackie Morris, Finance Director, reported the beginning balance for the Cemetery CD Funds VIP was $331,202.08 with a total interest earned from July to September of $4,503.31 bringing the total balance for September 2024 to $335,705.39. She reported the Cemetery Checking Account at National Bank of Blacksburg beginning July 1, 2024 was $20,428.83 with total revenues from July 1 through September 30, 2024 to $1,628.96 and expenditures of $14,922.00 bringing the total bank balance as of September 30, 2024 to $7,135.79. She reported the Cemetery Funds (VIP) beginning balance as of July 1, 2024 was $163,252.66 and interest earned from July to September 2024 was $2,219.74 leaving the balance as of September 30, 2024 to $165,472.40. Ms. Worrell asked what the interest rate was since they’ve been lowered on the investment. Ms. Morris stated the annual monthly yield was 5.4197% for one account but the rates are different for each account and it’s reflected on the statements. Mr. Seagle asked what is the Cemetery Fund VIP compared to the checking account and the VIP CD funds, he questioned why there were three accounts. Ms. Morris reported the CD funds were what the board had at First Bank and Trust that were closed out and that money was moved to the investment account. She stated the other two, the cemetery checking account at National Bank of Blacksburg is what the board agreed to leave in the account after moving funds to the investment account. Mr. Seagle asked what the cemetery funds were. Ms. Morris stated that was the remaining balance of your original checking account at National Bank of Blacksburg. Cemetery Management Report Mr. Smythers stated there was no report. Update on Cemetery GIS Mr. Painter reported a notice of award after vetting three different companies for the GIS project, the notice of award went to the Timmons Group. He reported they have already been given a notice to proceed and have begun surveying, and they have completed Sections A and B and are working on Section C at Pinehurst. He stated he expects them to complete the data acquisition for Pinehurst within the next couple of weeks, and the total profit cost was $50,000; $9,000 under budget. Mr. Seagle asked if the funeral home directors could tell where someone was buried. Mr. Painter stated the directors would be able to look up that information once the project is completed and the Town’s documentation of burials are all paper based, so that process would be able to identify locations of where different burials are could take hours, if not days, and this GIS system would simplify that and make data acquisition faster and more accurate. Mr. Seagle stated the funeral services have a map that could locate burials. Mr. Smythers stated the directors would be able to tell where someone is buried if they had performed the burial. Mr. Painter stated the Town also has a map, and the old Oakwood is well established family plots and easy to navigate but the new sections, which have more spaces becomes convoluted to have a paper map and inaccurate. Public Comments No public comments were made. Board Comments Ms. Carter stated she noticed the GIS team working in Pinehurst every day. Mr. Seagle asked if the regulations that were included in the packet were regulations for just the East Cemetery park. Mr. Painter stated it’s the document that is handed out for both Oakwood and Pinehurst. Ms. Worrell stated she had gotten a lengthier copy of the regulations when she joined the board and one regulation in particular was no fencing or rock around the graves which is not indicated by the document that was in the packet. Mr. Painter stated at the bottom of the current regulations it states that all graves must follow town code and the rules and regulations are actually just summarized version of that code. He suggested staff could expand the regulations onto that document. Ms. Worrell stated she’d like it expanded and would like to see the cemetery more uniform, no artifacts, balloons, stuffed animals, etc. Mr. Painter suggested a workshop meeting for the board to go through the code section, highlight the rules and regulations and suggestions to Town Council for amendments to the ordinances. Mr. Seagle stated there is a metal sign at the entrance of Oakwood that has the regulations listed and that’ll need to be replaced if the code is changed. Next Meeting Date Ms. Worrell suggested the next meeting be in January 2025. With no further business, the Mayor adjourned the meeting at 6:30 p.m.