Council extends cemetery operational suspension six months amid deed and probate concerns

The Midway City Council voted on April 7 to extend an operational suspension on the sale and transfer of cemetery plots for six months while staff and the Council address outstanding procedural and legal questions.

City attorney McKay Murdock outlined a draft process and form to verify authority to transfer burial rights and said the City needed documentation showing a requester had authority to act for an owner. Council Member Lisa Orme described family-specific problems she encountered, including spaces purchased decades ago that remain in a relative’s name and a case in which an apparently unrelated person occupied a grave purchased by her grandparents; she said probate can be cumbersome and recommended that future deeds include a listed beneficiary. Mayor Craig Simons said the City could reclaim cemetery spaces unused for 60 years and supported an additional six-month extension to finish work before opening a new section.

Council discussion raised concerns about requiring unanimous consent of all heirs, indemnification for the City, the cost implications of moving remains, and whether privatization of the cemetery should be considered. Council Member JC Simonsen moved to extend the operational suspension for six months to allow further review and to clarify that the intent of the agenda item was extension rather than immediate adoption of comprehensive new rules; Council Member Kevin Payne seconded. The motion passed with recorded Aye votes from Garland, Orme, Osborne, Payne and Simonsen.

The minutes note that the resolution as provided included proposed requirements for transfers that the Council agreed needed more review; staff will return to the Council at its next regular meeting with additional discussion and possible revisions.