Department of General Services
May 12, 2014
Briefing Overview
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Future vision
City owned cemeteries
Cemetery responsibilities
First steps towards improvement
Current condition of cemeteries
Current maintenance and operations budget
Current challenges
Mount Calvary Cemetery Complex
Future Vision
• Revitalize cemeteries by creating park-like
settings that invite visitors
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Install park benches
Install historic signage
Install water fountains
Install matching trash receptacles
Increase overall lawn-care maintenance
Future Vision (continued)
• Capitalize on the historic significance
of our cemeteries
• Tap into a new tourism market with our
Path of History
Current City Cemeteries
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Cedar Grove Cemetery
Oak Grove Cemetery
Olive Branch Cemetery
Mount Calvary Cemetery Complex
– Mount Calvary
– Mount Olive
– Fishers Hill (will take “ownership” in July 2014)
– Paupers Field
Cedar Grove Cemetery
Oak Grove Cemetery
Olive Branch Cemetery
Mount Calvary Cemetery Complex
Fisher’s Hill
Pauper’s
Field
Mt. Olive
Mt. Calvary
Mt. Calvary Cemetery Complex
Brief History
• Prior to 1960 – City owned & managed the following
cemeteries:
– Cedar Grove
– Oak Grove
– Olive Branch
• 1960 – City sold all of its vacant grave sites to a private entity
and entered an agreement with Wimbrough and Sons to
manage burial operations at all cemeteries
• 1964 – City sold the land east of Olive Branch Cemetery to
Wimbrough and Sons and adopted an ordinance designating
this land the Olive Branch Cemetery Annex
Current Cemetery Responsibilities
• Contractor – Wimbrough and Sons
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Sale of vacant graves
Digging of graves
Record Keeping
Scheduling interment services with funeral homes
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Grass cutting
Removal of flowers
Road maintenance
Repair of grave sites
Trash and debris removal
First Improvement Steps
• We have reorganized the cemetery operations
and created a Cemetery Superintendent using
an existing position
• Worked with the Sheriff’s Office to develop an
agreement for regular grass cutting and weeding
• Developed partnerships with private groups
to improve our historic cemeteries
• Developed a plan to reach the goal of a 7-day
cut cycle for all cemeteries
First Improvement Steps (continued)
• Major clean-up of old brush, debris and old flowers
• Regularly remove old flowers and memorials
• Reviewing the existing City Code and looking toward
developing a reasonable schedule for enforcement
• Installing signage that clearly states what is
acceptable in our cemeteries under the existing
code
Current Conditions
In City Cemeteries
• Cedar Grove
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Grass is on a 7-10 day cut cycle.
Replacing historic markers
Remade the Scatter Garden
Regularly repairing historic graves
Regularly repairing cave-ins
Very good staff relationship with the Cedar Grove
Cemetery Foundation
Current Conditions (continued)
• Oak Grove Cemetery
– Grass is on a 7-10 day cut cycle.
– Completed major clean-up of old brush
and overgrowth
– Replaced fencing where needed
– Ordered new signage
Current Conditions (continued)
• Olive Branch Cemetery
– Grass is on a 7-10 day cut cycle
– Completed major clean-up of old brush and
overgrowth
– Regularly removing old flowers
– Moved grave-digging equipment out of sight
– Covering work areas with appropriate fencing
– Ordered new signage
Current Conditions (continued)
• Mount Calvary Cemetery Complex
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Grass is on a 7-10 day cut cycle.
Completed a topographical survey
Removing brush, debris and overgrowth
Removing un-necessary trees
Developing a plan to repair cave-ins
Meeting with ERC to discuss drainage issues
Improving roadways using old crushed asphalt from
High Street re-paving (a temporary fix)
Current Funding
• The perpetual care fund currently totals $1,544,083
• Should appropriate annual earnings from the
investment of these funds to cemetery maintenance
• Current earnings are insufficient to cover total cost
of cemetery maintenance
• Current 2013-2014 budget (cost) is $220,420
• Ideal annual budget is $470,000±
2014-2015 Proposed Budget
• The proposed budgeted funds for cemetery
maintenance is $280,0000 which incorporates
several improvements in efficiency:
– Cemetery Superintendent
– Lower contract price by utilizing the Work Release
Program
– Certain infrastructure improvements
Current Challenges
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Compliance with the City Code
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Mt. Calvary, Mt. Olive, Fisher’s Hill and
Pauper’s Field condition
“Serious Drainage issues are persistent at this cemetery…. A complete
drainage plan should be done for this area. The amount of work to
be done is far beyond what the Perpetual Care Fund will ever be
able to address…There is no way this project could be handled
within the Perpetual Care Fund or General Operating Budget. This
will be a large project and will take numerous years to complete.”
Excerpt from the November 16, 2006
City Cemeteries Perpetual Care Fund 10-Year Master Plan, page 16
City Code on Enclosures and Decorations
Section 9-47 and Section 9-48
• No enclosures, flower beds, hedges or borders of any
kind will be permitted around or alongside of any grave.
• Nor ornaments or decorations other than cut or artificial
flowers shall be placed on any grave
• Flags may be place on graves on Memorial Day
• Floral designs may be used at burials, but shall be
removed from lots within ten days thereafter.
City Code on Monuments and Gravestones
Section 9-41 and Section 9-42
• A monument is any stone that projects more than 24
inches above the ground
• A gravestone must be between 4 and 12 inches thick and
no more than 24 inches wide
• A gravestone can be nor more than six inches above
the ground
• A grave can have only one stone.
• All stones and monument foundations must be
at least 4 feet into the ground
Mount Calvary Cemetery Complex:
Mt. Calvary
Mt. Olive
Fisher’s Hill
Pauper’s Field
Future Goals
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Restore the cemetery and the sanctity
that it deserves
Have the cemetery placed on the National
Register of Historic Places
– Through the National Park Service
– Develop the documentation that will identify the
cemetery as one of America’s historic and
archeological resources
Future Goals (continued)
• Have the cemetery become a part of the
“Network to Freedom”
– Through the National Park Service
– Develop the documentation to support the
identification of the cemetery as a place associated
with the Underground Railroad and thereby allowing it
to become part of a network of Underground Railroad
historical sites
• Expand the cemetery with additional
grave sites to support the
Perpetual Care Fund
Fisher’s Hill
Pauper’s
Field
Mt. Olive
Mt. Calvary
City of
Portsmouth
City of
Portsmouth
City of
Portsmouth
• Current combined cemetery boundaries
• Proposed “new” boundaries for cemetery and sale of grave sites
Collaborative Community Efforts
• African American Historical Society is the supporting
foundation - Mae Breckenridge
• Application for the National Register and Network
to Freedom historical documentation –
Nadia and Brenda Orton
• Grant writer – Margaret Windley
• Volunteerism and clean-up champion –
Christina Carlton
Timeline of Activity
• December, March, April: Volunteer and City Staff
meetings
• April:
– Successful grant of $4,000 to remove decaying trees /
trees that are damaging grave sites
– Completion of aerial survey and first step in
developing design for remediation of drainage
problem
Timeline of Activity (continued)
• July – Notice of Hearing for the City to officially take
possession of Fisher’s Hill Cemetery
• Next step – submit applications for the National
Register and Network to Freedom
• Fall – Completion of design documents for solving
the drainage issue and development of new grave
sites to support perpetual care