Red Bay opts not to take over cemetery

RED BAY – City officials declined an offer to accept ownership of the privately owned Hillcrest Memorial Garden Cemetery located on Golden Road.

Mayor Charlene Fancher said the owner of the cemetery made a request for the city to take over the maintenance and upkeep the same as it does for the city cemetery.

“There’s been a lot of citizens call about this subject,” Fancher said. “I have mixed feelings about it. Having been involved with the city cemetery for many years, it’s a big job maintaining a cemetery.”

Councilman Brad Bolton said from a “dollars and cents perspective,” after looking at the financial information turned over to the city, he could not recommend the city take on an additional cemetery.

“It’s putting the taxpayers of Red Bay at undue risk in my opinion when we already own a cemetery,” Bolton explained.

Bolton said he’s sympathetic to anyone who has relatives there, adding there’s always been two burial options — a city cemetery or a private one with the city cemetery offering the guarantee of being maintained.

Bolton said he did not think taxpayers would look on the council members kindly if they had the city take on the liability and ongoing operating cost of running a second cemetery. He added the city cemetery was “probably going to last us another hundred years where it’s at right now.”

Bolton said taking on the additional responsibility would involve diverting personnel from other projects.

“We’re desperate for labor in the projects we have ongoing,” he added.

Fancher agreed with Bolton’s assessments.

“Maintaining the city cemetery isn’t a moneymaker,” she said. “At the same time, we respect our city cemetery, and we try our best to maintain it at the highest level we can. We have a lot of other projects and presently we’re struggling to get those accomplished.”

Councilman Mike Kennedy said his parents and brother are buried at the Hillcrest Memorial Garden Cemetery, noting it has a lot of “sentimental value” for him.

“Based on what I’ve heard and the numbers I’ve seen, unless something changes, or a different offer is made, as much as it means to me, it’d be hard for me (to recommend),” Kennedy said.

He said it’s a business decision in the end, one that “just doesn’t make sense at this point.”

“There could be some different incentives or offers presented, and we would certainly look at them, but today I can’t support it – as much as I’d like to,” Kennedy said.

Councilman Jarod Massey also had “mixed emotions” on the subject.

“You want to see it taken care of,” Massey said, “but at the same time, the city employees are shorthanded now and there’s already more on our plate than what we can take care of at the moment.”

Bolton made a motion to decline the offer at this time. Councilman Jason Vinson seconded the motion.

The vote was 5-0 to decline the offer. Councilman Herbert Trulove was absent.

In other business the council: Held an executive session from 3:37 to 4:43 p.m. “to discuss the good name and character of an employee.” No votes were taken, and no decisions were made.

Approved the purchase of a sponsorship sign for $175 from the Red Bay High School cheerleaders.