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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-14-2026 MinutesCITY OF UBURN WASHINGTON CALL TO ORDER Cemetery Board Regular Meeting April 14, 2026 - 2:00 PM Cemetery Office, Arrangement Room MINUTES • The cemetery board meeting of Tuesday, April 14th, 2026 was called to order by Judi Roland at 2:12pm. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION • There was no public participation. ROLL CALL • Members present: Judi Roland, Bridget Jones, Jeanne Hicks, Tim Pierce and Robert Rakos • Staff present: Immer Chevalier and April Shank Cerio AGENDA MODIFICATIONS • There were no modifications to the agenda. PUBLIC COMMENT • There were no public comments. APPROVAL OF MINUTES A. Review of Minutes — Minutes from Meeting on February 10, 2026 • Minutes from meeting on February 10th, 2026 were reviewed, no corrections or additions were made and was unanimously passed to approve as printed. UNFINISHED BUSINESS A. New John Deere Mower & Gator • The new John Deere gator arrived mid -February at M & O, and they installed the GPS device and windshield. The cemetery received it at the end of February. The new mower was delivered as well which was perfect timing as the mowing season started at the beginning of March. M&O will do all maintenance on both of these. B. Seasonal Employment There were about 50 applications submitted for the two seasonal positions opening. Five interviews were held at the end of February. One seasonal selected worked at the cemetery last year, so no interview or training was needed for him. The other had worked for the City in Parks years ago, as well as other cities for seasonal work, so he has experience. The seasonals help with weekly flower pick-ups, empty garbage, push mowing in the oval, Centennial Urn Garden and Child's Place. The 9th addition is the busiest section and takes more time due to a lot of current burials. The older sections are not as busy and fewer burials occur. Question from the board - Could the cemetery sell any of the old plots that aren't utilized in the older sections? No, as they are all sold and an owner is listed from years ago. Even if a plot was intended for someone, and they passed years ago and went elsewhere, the plot is still in their name and the next of kin to that person could utilize that plot. C. Easter Sunrise Service • Easter sunrise service was very well attended this year, 90-100 people. The weather was beautiful. Pastor Susan from Messiah Lutheran Church officiated. Cemetery staff Immer Chevalier and Zach Hopper arrived by 5:30am with the church arriving at 5:45am to set up equipment. The cemetery provided coffee and donuts for attendees. • Question from the Board - What is the average number of attendees throughout the years? Probably 50-60. The weather always comes into play for attendance numbers and it's typically a lot of the same families. The church advertises as well as the cemetery via the website and a road sign. NEW BUSINESS A. Activity In The Rainier Serenity Section • Rainier Serenity is the new upright plotted section near the pond which just opened in January. In February, the first several plots were sold, followed by another family purchasing three and another family purchasing six. The front row is almost all sold. New signage was also added to the area to keep children away from the pond as well as employees only beyond this point. Question from the board - Are the upright plots priced higher? Yes, these are almost $14,000 each. Question from the board - Are these plots competitive on price compared with other cemeteries? The cemetery thinks so. They are higher than some local cemeteries but still lower than the Bellevue & Seattle areas. B. 10th Addition Project - Drainage System This project started in 2024 with taking down the trees. Followed by rock removal, grading and the addition of irrigation lines in 2025. The heavy rains of December hit, followed by more rain which was washing away soil and leaving small rivers flowing in the area. You would sink 6" if walking through the area. The water table is very high. The cemetery is currently talking with some companies for ideas of how to address these water issues before plotting and selling. Potential french drains are one option. The storm department did some drainage behind the area which did not work. Question from the board - Who did the tree cutting? Thundering Oak which does a lot of cutting for the city. Question from the board - Does the city have a Geotech to check things out? There is a city project manager for the project itself. C. 2027-2028 Biennial Budget A biennial budget meeting was held in March. The city is going to a ZBB which stands for Zero Based Budget, meaning the departments will need to start from scratch with their budgets. However, the cemetery will not have to do this since it is an Enterprise fund. The budget deadline is in May and is being worked on. With water bills and materials going up in price, some things will definitely need to be adjusted. If extra funds are needed, it must be requested. The director and city analyst are always willing to help. The cemetery has to prove there are enough funds for this, and it goes through council for approval. Question from the board - Who manages the cemetery's endowed care fund? The city does, not the cemetery directly. Question from the board - Can the ground watering time be cut down to save? Possibly, but the grounds need so much water to stay green. If you cut back watering time too much, it's hard to recover from that. ANNOUNCEMENTS, REPORTS, AND PRESENTATIONS A. Budget Update - February -March 2026 • February and March both had high revenue months, with March being an unusual all-time high. However, the multiple sales of upright monument plots were most of the reason for the high month. Total placements were average for both months. Marker sales were also up in March. MOUNTAIN VIEW CEMETERY CEMETERY SALES FEBRUARY - MARCH 2026 Cemetery Sates February March Month -To -Date Receipts $220,662.22 $361,597.96 Ground Plots 16 17 Cremation Plots 3 4 Niches 4 4 ForestWalk Ossuary Extended Land Use 2 Markers 13 21 Graves 19 21 Markers 13 21 Niches 4 4 Total Placements 24 26 Cremation S 15 Ground Burial 16 11 Question from the board - Are there any federal taxes on the revenue amounts? No DISCUSSION ITEMS There were no discussion items. SCHEDULE FOR UPCOMING MEETINGS A. Next Meeting — Tuesday, June 9th, 2026 at 2:00 pm ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the Board, the meeting was adjourned by Judi Roland at 3:13 pm. �V\ APPROVED this day of 2026. C PrepareBay: Aril Shank Ceerrio,, Cemetery Administrative Specialist Approyed`By: Judi Roland, Chairperson L ..