The Common Council approved a transfer agreement and an ordinance creating a cemetery committee on Nov. 19 that paves the way for the city to take over ownership of Spring Grove Cemetery on Jan. 1.
Finance Director Nick Griffin said the cemetery notified the city on Aug. 12 that they wanted to transfer ownership of the cemetery to the city and state statute requires the city to do so. He said the newly created cemetery committee will meet in December on a date yet to be determined and the city will take over ownership on Jan. 1.
Griffin said the city expects to receive about $1.7 million from the cemetery from investments the cemetery has made. The city will take over maintenance of the cemetery and the selling of plots.
In a memo to the council, Griffin said this will be the first active cemetery the city has taken ownership of and the first year will be a learning year for staff on how to operate a cemetery.
Mayor Ryan Schroeder said it was nice that the city was going to receive some funding to help keep things going. He also noted that a private group just completed its fourth year of restoring damaged headstones at the cemetery this fall.
Council rejects city-wide trash collection bids
The council took the recommendation of the General Operations Committee and rejected all bids for city-wide trash collection. The GOC originally recommended the move in October, but several residents opposed it at the October Common Council meeting, so it was sent back to the GOC. A large crowd again showed up to the Nov. 12 meeting only to hear that city staff was recommending the issue be put off until next year because it was so late in the budget process.
The GOC recommended to the council rejecting all bids based on that recommendation and the opposition to the plan by residents. The council did so on Nov. 19 and trash collection in the city will remain the responsibility of individual property owners.
For the full story, please see the print edition of the Delavan Enterprise.
