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Commissioners discuss signage program for county cemeteries; cemetery board asks for ordinance option
Summary
A county commissioner presented a proposal to place reflective signs with rules at up to 20 prominent Jefferson County cemeteries, provided cost estimates for signs and wooden posts, and reported the cemetery board’s request that the county consider an ordinance to codify rules.
Jefferson County commissioners discussed a proposal to place reflective informational and rules signs at an initial set of 20 local cemeteries and were told the cemetery board would like the county to consider adopting an ordinance to formalize rules and protections.
The proposal, presented to the board as a response to constituent concerns about disrespectful behavior in cemeteries, outlined suggested sign language such as “dawn to dusk,” a 10‑mile‑per‑hour speed limit, maintaining respectful volume, and prohibiting recreational activities (for example, sports and frisbees), ATVs and certain other wheeled recreational devices. The presenter said the cemetery board was not fully in favor of a blanket ban on all‑terrain vehicles because some people use them respectfully.
Cost estimates presented to commissioners: approximately $674.48 for 20 custom reflective signs (single‑sided, about 3–3.99 square feet each) and roughly $579 for 50 wooden 4x4 posts (8 feet long) if the county supplies posts. The presenter said the cemetery board and county would choose the 20 most prominent cemeteries to sign first because Jefferson County has many small burial sites, some with only two or three stones or inaccessible by road.
Cemetery inventory figures discussed during the meeting: the cemetery board cares for 37 sites and the presenter cited another approximately 26 or so additional sites; speakers counted up to around 74 small burial sites countywide when combining those figures, though participants noted minor disagreements while counting during the meeting.
The cemetery board requested that commissioners consider creating an ordinance to codify cemetery rules and signage placement; the presenter said the board will identify the priority 20 sites. Commissioners asked to review the cemetery board’s recommendations and return with a decision. No formal vote or ordinance action was recorded during the meeting.
Quotations in the meeting included the presenter’s description of signage suggestions and the budget figure for the 20 signs: “So the signage, right now, it would be around, $674.48 for those 20.”
