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Cemetery Board

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Vivian Moon View Drop Down
MUSA Council
MUSA Council


Joined: May 16 2008
Location: Middletown, Ohi
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Topic: Cemetery Board
    Posted: Sep 11 2010 at 10:04am
Middletown Journal Editorial
September 10, 2010

Thumbs up for some straight talk from Middletown City Council member Bill Becker on Sept. 7 about a plan from city administrators that could lead to the formation of a new advisory committee to oversee the city’s historic pioneer cemetery off First Avenue. Regular readers know that budget-conscious city officials haven’t been able to commit city funds for the cemetery’s upkeep, despite vigorous pleas from some concerned residents. A couple of council members were skeptical about the creation of yet another advisory board, and Becker hit the nail on the head. Little or no money is in the city’s budget for the cemetery, he said, and a new board isn’t going to change that situation. While a new board might provide more bureaucracy for cemetery advocates to deal with, it doesn’t change the sad situation with the cemetery’s neglect.

    The establishment of a cemetery board by the City is a positive move in the right direction to solving the many problems at the Middletown Cemetery.  At last the Middletown Cemetery will have a voice at city council.
   When I started the cemetery project in the spring of 2004, I went to City Hall to get permission to work at the cemetery and was sent from one office to another.  After several months of going from one department to another it was decided that I needed the approval of three different departments to work at the cemetery.  And to add to this problem over the years I have worked under four City Managers and several changes in department heads.  I believe a Cemetery Board will make this long term restoration project much easier for others in the future.


   
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VietVet View Drop Down
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Joined: May 15 2008
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote VietVet Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 11 2010 at 12:02pm
We are always hearing from the city leaders, and those who support them, that the people on MUSA and other "negative" complainers (their words on some of their posts) never cooperate with the city officials. We had some folks, including Ms. Moon, who wanted to participate in work sessions at this cemetery. Ms. Moon states in her post that she had to jump through hoops and get permission from three different department heads to have people VOLUNTEER to help the city out. I would imagine that they could get some volunteers to do the only thing they do to the cemetery- cut the grass. I would volunteer to do that on a Sat. morning if I had a riding mower available.I could haul it to the cemetery in my pick-up. I have a trimmer and finishing mower for around the grave sites. (You will need to open the gates on Saturdays for me to accomplish this Ms. Gilleland)

Here we have a situation where some citizens from the "negative" group (MUSA), want to contribute and help the city accomplish a task, free to the city, and get nothing but crap from the people at the city building. Can you anti-MUSA people explain why your buddies at city hall are preventing people from helping their city save money? I thought your gripe was that we don't want to cooperate with the city. In this case, the city is the un-cooperative one.
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Vivian Moon View Drop Down
MUSA Council
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Joined: May 16 2008
Location: Middletown, Ohi
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 11 2010 at 3:54pm
Vet
Please read my post again LOL I worked at the Middletown Cemetery from March 2004 - June 2009. LOLLOL. During those years I spent hundreds of hours during the summer digging in the dirt and swinging my little ax,
The mowing is not done by the city but by Western Landscaping and they do a wonderful job.
Vet the gates to the cemetery are now open 24 hours a day 7 days a week.
It is just a matter of time before the cemetery will be vandilized again.




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tomahawk35 View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote tomahawk35 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 11 2010 at 9:57pm
If you want the city to clean up the cemetery, just park a couple of  trailers there. "They will Come"
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VietVet View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote VietVet Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 11 2010 at 10:05pm
Vivian- when did the city have a change of heart and open it 24/7? I'm a little behind the times I guess. I thought Gary Barge was still opening and closing the gates each day. I was also under the impression that the city was doing the mowing.....that they said that was all they could do with the time constraints and the manpower they could put against the upkeep. This all came from discussions early on concerning the flower removal incidents and the initial vault discussions. Shame there are no city funds to hire someone to patrol the grounds during off hours to keep the vandals from destroying the monuments and cutting the fences.
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Vivian Moon View Drop Down
MUSA Council
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Joined: May 16 2008
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 12 2010 at 3:31am

Vet
   The City was opening and closing the gates Mon-Fri and Gary Barge did the gates Sat-Sun.
    A couple of weeks ago several people called me and told me the gates to the cemetery were open. When I called downtown they said they had received to many complaints because the gates were closed at
3 pm.
  You don’t need a guard, you just need to open from
8 am- dusk same as Woodside Cemetery and all other cemeteries.
    I don’t think city workers mow anything.

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Vivian Moon View Drop Down
MUSA Council
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 12 2010 at 4:46am

Vet
   The first MCF Grant that I wrote in February 2005 was for the restoration of the vault.

    During March 2005 the cemetery was vandalized three times in less than 30 days. Numerous stones large and small were pushed over and some broken. So much damage ($4,000) that even Channel 12 did a story. I called and complained to Councilman Noah Powers and the next week I had my first meeting with City Hall. Present at this meeting was Becker, Kohler, Angela Tucker, Maj. Huffman, Sgt. Cunningham, Corbett Cox, Deb Morrison and I believe Ginger Smith. It was decided at this meeting that the following items needed to be completed to stop the damage:
1. That the gates to the cemetery needed to be locked.
2. Repair the East and West fences lines
3. Remove all brush and trees from East and West fence lines.
4. Install large flood light in the cemetery.
5. Plant large barberry bushes in the SW corner of the cemetery.
    It was after this meeting that I changed the grant from the Restoration of the Vault to Security and Beautification.
    In May 2005 I installed the new sign, underground electric, water line and landscaping at the front entry to the cemetery and the lights at the vault with this MCF Grant.

Middletown Cemetery April 9,2005


   
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TANGO View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TANGO Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 12 2010 at 8:39am
There are many city, townships right around middletown that deal with maintaining cemeteries. They dont create boards to take of what they were elected to . I sit on a private cemetery board , its not hard . Council should take of it .


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Vivian Moon View Drop Down
MUSA Council
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 12 2010 at 11:04am

Tango

When I walked into the Middletown Cemetery in 2004 I was shocked at the condition and all the downed tombstones. Here is the West Fence Line that took me two years to clear because it was grown through and into the fence and had to be cut out by hand.

This was part of March 2005 agreement with the City so the police could see into the cemetery when the cemetery gates were locked.







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Mtown View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mtown Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 12 2010 at 5:53pm
Thought you had to be resident of Middletown to serve in Boards or Commissions.
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Mike_Presta View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mike_Presta Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 12 2010 at 6:19pm
Originally posted by Mtown Mtown wrote:

Thought you had to be resident of Middletown to serve in Boards or Commissions.
According to Middletown's Codified Ordinances:
 
"§ 260.03 RESIDENCY REQUIREMENT.

Every member of any City board or commission shall be a resident of the City."

However, this administration sometimes seems to appoint whomever they wish to appoint.
“Mulligan said he ... doesn’t believe they necessarily make the return on investment necessary to keep funding them.” …The Middletown Journal, January 30, 2012
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Mike_Presta View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Mike_Presta Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 12 2010 at 6:28pm
Here's an interesting point:
With all of the prominent people who claim to have such a deep-seated love of history in this city, why is it that we never hear from them when the issue of of this HISTORIC Pioneer Cemetery arises?
 
Whenever "historic" S. Main Street, "historic" downtown, or "historic" Highlands is the subject, we always hear from a veritable parade of high-minded citizens in near hysterics demanding preservation, restoration, funding, city action or whatever else is the cause of the day. 
 
Yet, when this most HISTORIC of all sites in Middletown is the subject, nary a peep out of any of these leading citizens, unless it is in opposition!!!  Why is that???
 
ANYONE???
“Mulligan said he ... doesn’t believe they necessarily make the return on investment necessary to keep funding them.” …The Middletown Journal, January 30, 2012
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Hermes View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Hermes Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 12 2010 at 6:47pm
Probably because the cemetery doesn't effect their bottom line. You can't make money from the dead,unless of course your in the funeral business.
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TANGO View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote TANGO Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 12 2010 at 7:21pm
Vivian I COMMEND you and your efforts. But this is the cities responsibility. All communities have this problem they deal with it and not create new boards . One council member said at the last meeting that this board might be better at running the cemetery than council. If he really feels this way maybe he should not be on council. That's just an excuse to keep from making hard decisions. Most important have some respect and morals (council)
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Vivian Moon View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 14 2010 at 6:10am

Tango
Problems at the cemetery have been going on for years. The families have been complaining about the condition of the grounds and downed stones for years.
In 1995 a group started working on the cemetery and the City didn’t carry through with the plan.
I informed the City in 2005 that the
Middletown Cemetery was not in compliance with ORC 4767.06 and for the past five years I have worked to accomplish this goal. However at some point the City needs to step up take responsibility and do the right thing.    

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VietVet View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote VietVet Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 14 2010 at 6:24am
It is not logical to me to have a group of citizens that want to volunteer their time to take care of a city responsibility like the cemetery, and then have Council and the city manager shut the door on them when they try to help the city out. If I were on council, I would welcome any and all private citizen efforts to help the city accomplish things like this and do my best to support them. It doesn't make any sense for the city to fight the people. What would be the purpose in this? ......to show who's boss? To keep people in line?...... If so, how childish (and ignorant)
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Hermes View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Hermes Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 14 2010 at 8:50am
Vet - Nothing this city does makes any sense. When is the last time the city passed an ordinance or actually done something that benefited someone besides themselves ?
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Vivian Moon View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 14 2010 at 10:47am

The Middletown Cemetery Vault was built about 1870
I have found no records of any repairs to the vault since 1947.
The Miltonville Cemetery Vault was built in 1882 by the same stone mason and still has the original slate roof, cupola and steel doors.

http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ohmidcem/cm-MiltonvilleCemetery.htm

The only reason for the current condition of the vault at the Middletown Cemetery is years of utter neglect by the City.
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Vivian Moon View Drop Down
MUSA Council
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Vivian Moon Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Sep 17 2010 at 7:48am

ORDINANCE NO. O2010-65

AN ORDINANCE ESTABLISHING A PIONEER CEMETERY BOARD.


The legal name of this property is Middletown Cemetery, located at 1650 First Ave. Middletown, Ohio

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angelababy View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote angelababy Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Oct 18 2010 at 3:00am
Probably because the cemetery doesn't effect their bottom line. You can't make money from the dead,unless of course your in the funeral business.
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