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Weathersfield Twp. to increase cemetery rates starting July 1
By Mary Smith
MINERAL RIDGE
Rates will increase at Weathersfield Township cemeteries — Kerr, Welsh Hill, Ohltown and Welsh Baptist — starting July 1.
Township Trustee Steve Gerberry said rates were raised because there “hasn’t been an increase in several years.”
He noted that running the cemeteries is not really profitable, and trustees made a comparison by checking similar township cemetery charges in both Mahoning and Trumbull counties.
Trustee James Stoddard said trustees are simplifying the price structure, and compared to other townships, Weathersfield is medium to low in rates.
He added that substantial improvements had been made at the cemeteries, especially Kerr, and there are roads that need repaving in Kerr, Welsh Hill and Ohltown cemeteries.
“We are aiming at making them self-sufficient,” he said. “Our goal is to have revenues more equally offset the cost of operating them.”
But there is no way to know how many burials there will be in a given year. Kerr Cemetery is the only one where new burial plots are being sold.
People who already have lots in Welsh Hill and Ohltown cemeteries can still be buried there.
Rates last set in June 2005 will increase effective July 1 as follows: one grave for a resident, $350; opening and closing of graves will go from $300 to $400 for a grave for person over age 6; and from $75 for infant and $150 for age 1 to 6 to $200 for either.
Cremations will increase from $150 to $250.
Nonresident pricing is $600 for one grave, up from $500.
The nonresident rate is $600 for opening and closing for over age 6, up from $500, and $250 for an infant to 6, changed from $150 for 1 to 6 and $75 for an infant to 1.
Extra rates apply for overtime hours, entering the cemetery after 2:30 p.m. and later Monday through Friday, for an additional $200 over the initial rate.
Opening and closing prices will be two times the Saturday rate for standard holidays. Saturdays are $200 before 1:30 p.m. and $400 after 1:30 p.m.
Nonresidents using the grave of a township resident will pay a surcharge of $250 for the use of the grave. (This is equal to the cost of a nonresident grave.)
All residents who purchased graves after Jan. 1, 1982, will pay the surcharge for a grave, if they did not purchase the grave as a nonresident.
Cemetery cleanup will begin April 1 and Oct. 15 of each year.
Additional information on monument placement, decorations and use of graves is available at the township office.