Ogden City changes legal code to preserve cemetery’s life
Headstones seem to expand to the edges of Ogden City Cemetery in Ogden on Thursday, February 18, 2016.
Headstones seem to expand to the edges of Ogden City Cemetery in Ogden on Thursday, February 18, 2016.
A dusting of snow covers the Ogden City Cemetery on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016. The city has implemented new policies to manage open space as the cemetery becomes more crowded.
A dusting of snow covers the Ogden City Cemetery on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016. The city has implemented new policies to manage open space as the cemetery becomes more crowded.
A dusting of snow covers the Ogden City Cemetery on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016. The city has implemented new policies to manage open space as the cemetery becomes more crowded.
A dusting of snow covers the Ogden City Cemetery on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2016. The city has implemented new policies to manage open space as the cemetery becomes more crowded.
OGDEN — When an inevitability like death collides with a finite amount of space, change is bound to happen.
The Ogden City Cemetery is running out of space. And while it’s not occurring at a particularly rapid rate, the city has made some administrative changes officials say will extend the life of the 165-year-old graveyard.
Ogden Public Ways and Parks Director Perry Huffaker said the city estimates it has 40 years before the cemetery — as it’s currently configured — is filled to capacity.
“Right now, we have over 53,000 permanent residents there,” Huffaker said. “And we also have some (burial plots) that have been vacant for 100 years.”
Huffaker said families often purchase several plots at a time, with the intent of being buried next to each other. But that’s become a problem, he said, because plans aren’t ever as certain as death.
“What has happened in the history of the cemetery is that the offspring will end up being buried somewhere else,” Huffaker said. “It’s become problematic.”
And with space coming at more of a premium with each passing day, having burial plots that have sat unused for decades is no longer sustainable.
To address this, the city has revamped the cemetery ordinance to include a written policy for the abandonment or termination of burial plots.
The change now allows the city to reclaim and resell plots if they have gone unused for at least 60 years. The new policy mirrors state code and would require that the city attempt to contact plot owners or their heirs before they can terminate the contract and take back a plot.
If owners or heirs aren’t immediately found, the city would publish a notice in the newspaper for three weeks and also mail a notice to the last known address of the plot owner. If no one comes forward to claim the plot, the city would be able to terminate ownership 30 days after the last publication of the notice.
“We would do our due diligence to contact potential owners,” Huffaker said.
Ogden Mayor Mike Caldwell said the new policy is necessary and will allow for better use of current city facilities.
Huffaker said the city has a patch of land immediately northeast of the cemetery that will be developed for burial space when the cemetery fills up. The land is currently being used as a green waste disposal site.
The new ordinance also includes a policy that requires a person to get written approval from the cemetery sexton before they plant any vegetation. It also allows the city to remove any plantings that are in the way of making burials or deemed unsafe.
“We’re really happy we worked on this (ordinance),” Huffaker said. “It was last refreshed in 1995, so it was long overdue.”
You can reach reporter Mitch Shaw at mishaw@standard.net or at 801-625-4233. Follow him on Twitter at @mitchshaw23 or like him on Facebook.
