SR 06:203 - Laserfiche WebLink

The Catholic Funeral & Cemetery Services (CFCS) has agreed to be a central point of contact for these families. They would provide all operation services including arranging services and collecting fees directly from the families without our involvement or additional cost to the City. CFCS has agreed to contract with the City for these services and a copy of a letter stating their interest and proposed initial terms is attached as Exhibit 5. It can also help with converting existing cemetery records into a database for easier management and has expressed an interest in partnering with us for maintenance of the adjacent St. Augustine Cemetery, but this later arrangement is not required. Under this scenario, the Parks & Recreation Commission would be generally responsible for reviewing service levels, recommending fees and providing other general information to the City Council similar to the role it serves with other City parks and facilities. . Ownership Alternative 3: City owns the Cemetery but delegates responsibility to the Pioneers for maintenance and oversight. With this alternative, the Pioneers could explore contracting with the CFCS for cemetery operations and a private firm for site maintenance. The group mayor may not choose to expand capacity. This scenario assumes the City will provide some or all funding for initial capital improvement and ongoing maintenance. The exact amount of ongoing funding would be dependent upon operating decisions, contracting costs and potentially, fund raising. Alternatively, the City could assume site maintenance. This alternative would create a structure somewhat similar to the arrangement with the Amador-Livermore Valley Historical Society for operation ofthe Museum. As an alternative to acquiring the site, Council could offer to provide one-time or ongoing funding to the Odd Fellows for capital improvements to the site and/or for ongoing maintenance. Their willingness to accept the funds is unclear especially since they seem focused on shifting ownership to others if possible. Other Cities' Experience with Cemeteries In preparing this report, staff contacted a number of cities that operate cemeteries such as Long Beach, Santa Clara, Benicia, and Dublin. Staff at those locations shared a wide range of issues they experienced with their cemeteries and they, uniformly, strongly recommended we not acquire the Odd Fellows site. Those most similar to Pleasanton Memorial Gardens Cemetery are the cemeteries in Dublin and Benicia, which staff visited. . City of Dublin. Since 2000, the City of Dublin has owned and operated a similar historical cemetery located at 660 Donlon Way. (See Exhibit 7 for photos.) The cemetery site is somewhat smaller in size than Pleasanton Memorial Gardens and is part of a historical park that includes other historical facilities including Old St. Raymond's Church (1860) and Murray School (1856). All cemetery operations are handled by the City of Dublin. City staff from the Heritage and Cultural Arts Department coordinates burial services with a contractor and typically handles four burials and four cremations per year. They don't sell plots because at the time SR 06:203 Page 7