City of Jacksonville Cemetery Board Met March 19.
Here is the minutes provided by the board:
The regular monthly meeting of the Jacksonville City Cemeteries Board was called to order at 8:37 a.m. in the Commission Room of the Jacksonville Municipal Building. The meeting was publicly announced by posting and by written notice to the local newspaper and radio stations.
ROLL CALL: Members present were: Chairman Linda Brown, Tom Newby, Gerald Scott; Treasurer Mary Fergurson; City Clerk Skip Bradshaw; Superintendent Doug Moore. Absent from the meeting was member Carolyn Bonjean. A quorum was declared.
AGENDA: Motion was made by Newby, seconded by Scott, to approve the March 19, 2021 Agenda as presented in advance. By voice vote, motion carried.
MINUTES: Mr. Newby stated that it was Mr. Scott who asked whether or not the Department should seek bids from other sources for the columbariums. Motion was made by Newby, seconded by Scott, to approve the February 19, 2021 Minutes as amended. By voice vote, motion carried.
FINANCE:
a.) Treasurer’s Investment Report – February 2021:
Treas. Fergurson advised that there are two $100,000 Certificate of Deposits (CD) that are scheduled to mature, one on March 22, 2021 and one on March 24, 2021. There is also a CD in the amount of $60,000 in the Land & Building Fund that matured March 4, 2021 but those funds have not been reinvested because they may be used for columbarium purchases. There was a slight appreciation in equity assets, and the Berthal Fisher Money Market Account is at $173,874.24 bringing the total portfolio value to $1,218,780.46. She noted that the Vanguard Equity Income Fund and the Vanguard Small-Cap Index Fund are both performing quite well. As the economy recovers from the pandemic, its those smaller segments of the market that tend to rise first. She noted that interest rates remain volatile. The ten year treasury rose from 0.90% to 1.70%. Motion was made by Newby, seconded by Scott, to approve the Treasurer’s Report. By voice vote, motion carried.
b.) Cash Receipts Report – February 2021:
Chair Brown gave a brief overview of the February Cash Receipts Report noting that the cash balance is at $120,137.27. There is a revenue balance of $88,210.19 and an expenditure balance of $48,434.19 at the end of February.
c.) Cash Receipts Report and Claims Approval – February 2021:
Motion was made by Scott, seconded by Newby, to approve the Cash Receipts Reports and to pay claims when funds are available. By voice vote, motion carried.
SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT: Supt. Moore reported on the following:
✠ The City is now licensed through 2024 for both cemeteries through the State of Illinois.
✠ The Cemetery Department has purchased two new mowers, with trade-in of the two oldest mowers that were out of warranty.
✠ The State of Illinois has paid their 2020 mowing fees of $12,100. CA Beard has prepared paperwork for the lapsed appropriation of the 2019 mowing fees. General discussion ensued regarding the process of getting those monies from the State, as their fiscal year 2019 is closed.
✠ The Department has notified the public of the mowing season, addressing grave decorations on the ground and on the tombstones.
✠ The Department has prepared ten burials this week, many of which were deaths that had occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic in late 2020/early 2021.
✠ Supt. Moore is gaining familiarity with equipment and is learning to dig burial spaces.
✠ Supt. Moore is looking at new software for burial records but he does not feel he is comfortable making a decision on exactly what the Departments needs are. This is something he is keeping in mind and is educating himself about the products available. The current software is in-flexible to an extent and updates have not been done on a regular basis, so new software may be forthcoming.
✠ There is a group called Shrouded Veterans that is wanting to put a military marker up for a gentleman named Colonel McLean F. Wood buried in East Cemetery. Col. Wood was buried in 1865, before the Department began formally recording burials. There is additional documentation that shows there was a tombstone at one time, but the location is unknown.
✠ Supt. Moore met with CA Beard regarding the access agreement for the Pathway stones. Supt. Moore is to review the contract from Central Management Services (CMS) and provide CA Beard with any amendments. When complete it will be submitted back to CMS.
Motion was made by Newby, seconded by Scott, to approve the Superintendent’s Report. By voice vote, motion carried.
PUBLIC COMMENT: No discussion.
OLD BUSINESS: There has been an addendum prepared for the transfer of deeds regarding the Barton Stone Christian Home burial spaces being transferred from the National Benevolent Association (NBA) to the Jacksonville Chaplaincy Group, which will then be transferred to the City. Included within that agreement there is reference to the majority of these burials being cremains as space sometimes does not allow for a typical burial. Rows 8, 9 and 10 would be retained for the Chaplaincy Group use which is consistent with the Christian Home spaces, and rows 11-15 would be available for the City to sell. Language was also included about the share burials potentially going into the short spaces on row 7 that are unsellable. The City has also been tasked, along with the funeral homes, for establishing criteria for who would be interred in these spaces. However, Supt. Moore will leave that to the funeral homes because they do that through public aid. The addendum will be presented to the Council March 22nd for discussion.
Chair Brown presented a letter sent to the Painter family regarding their request to place a metal monument on their gravesite, stating that the City approves of their request providing all rules and regulations are followed.
Supt. Moore advised that the lots in the new Massey addition at Diamond Grove Cemetery will not be ready to sell this year because the topography needs attention due to drainage issues. Access points to some of the other interments throughout the Diamond Grove cemetery are being looked at for a solution that would provide easier access to those that are difficult to reach.
Chair Brown expressed her gratitude toward Supt. Moore for his hard work on the rule book. She discussed a few amendments and additions she would like to see implemented in an attempt to make the book more user friendly. Discussion ensued on what should be included in the book, and the possibility of providing a separate information booklet that includes the history of the cemeteries rather than putting that information in the rule book.
Treas. Fergurson discussed the few changes to the Cemeteries Investment Policy, noting that the main change was the increase of allocation in equities from a maximum of 35% to 50%, and a section that requires a signature and date of when the policy is enacted. Motion was made by Scott, seconded by Newby, to accept the updated Cemeteries Investment Policy as presented. By voice vote, motion carried.
Motion was made by Newby, seconded by Scott, to elect Linda Brown as Chairman of the Jacksonville City Cemeteries Board of Managers. By voice vote, motion carried.
Motion was made by Newby, seconded by Scott, to elect Carolyn Bonjean as Secretary of the Jacksonville City Cemeteries Board of Managers. By voice vote, motion carried.
NEW BUSINESS: No discussion.
ADJOURNMENT: Hearing no further business, a motion was made by Newby, seconded by Scott, to adjourn the meeting at 9:29 a.m. By voice vote, motion carried. The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Jacksonville City Cemeteries Board will be held Friday, April 16, 2021, 8:00 a.m. at Norma’s North Star Café.
http://cms6.revize.com/revize/jacksonvilleil/city_government/boards_commissions_and_committees/docs/Boards%20Commissions%20Committees/Cemetery_Board_Minutes/2021/Cemetery%20Bd.%20Mtg.%20Minutes%2003.19.21.pdf
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