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RUNNING OUT OF ROOM • The Mona City Council heard that the city cemetery needs to be expanded to provide for more burial plots.
By Myrna Trauntvein
Times-News Correspondent
The Mona City cemetery needs to be added to so that there will be enough room for future burials.
Everd Squire, city finance director, showed council members a map of the cemetery showing plots that have been used and plots that are still to be used.
There are also plots that can never be used because of burials on each side of the plot which have used more than the allotted space. Therefore those plots are not wide enough for a standard burial.
"The map represents hours and hours of work, mostly by my family," said Squire.
In the older parts of the cemetery, he said, there were "Xs" on the map on the spots which could never be used because they were now too narrow.
"Those narrow lots could be used for a child's burial or for a cremation," he said.
Frank Riding, council member, had measured the proposed new area and found there was room for two sections to be added. Though there is still room to expand more, said Squire, it would not be wise to add all of the available property because of the time and money which would need to be invested in a sprinkling system and in keeping the area green.
Squire said the proposal was that the city develop the land just to the East side of the existing cemetery.
"The proposed lots are bordered by a curb five to six inches wide and about one foot deep," said Squire. "We need to put a copper rivet on each side so it will be simple to measure for a lot."
A burial plot needs to be 42-inches wide and 100 inches long and there needs to be 18-inches on each side.
Squire said that Nephi allows four-feet per lot but, in his opinion, five-feet is even better.
The new area would allow approximately 50 rows.
"We need to call for bids on the curb and on the sprinkling system," said Squire.
Such a project could be in the neighborhood of several thousand dollars, he said.
Riding said that the area would be 335-feet long without a road. For the purposes of purchasing seed, there would be 300-feet that would need to be seeded.
In his opinion, said Riding, the city would do well to seed the area rather than put sod on it.
"We have very few lots still available," said Squire. "We need to plan to do the project as soon as possible."
The result of the addition would be that there would be 240 lots.
Burial plots cost $100 for residents of the community and $400 for non-residents.
"There is no state-mandated charge," said Squire. "It is up to the city to make that decision."
He said that the city now had about $8,000 in the cemetery perpetual care fund which could be used to help pay for the cemetery addition.
The city council could also consider limiting the number of lots one individual could purchase at one time. The limit of four lots per customer might be a good plot limit to put into practice.
In the city policy governing the cemetery, said Bill Mills, mayor, it is written that a person determining that they no longer want one of the lots they have set aside must sell the plot back to the city at no profit.
"They are to sell it back for what they paid for it," said Mills.
Lorna Squire marks the grave sites for those who are to be buried and for those who are purchasing plots, said Squire.
"We need to get started," said Riding.
The new fiscal year starts in June and plans need to be made and discussed prior to that time.
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