The business of running a cemetery should be on the shoulders of the province and country instead of municipalities, Tay Township Deputy Mayor Barry Norris said during a recent committee of the whole meeting.
A report costing out the cemetery operations for 2024 was discussed at the meeting, as it was the first year the municipality had assumed ownership and operations for all three Tay Township active cemeteries.
The report focused on in-house cemetery administration and grounds maintenance at the season’s end.
While a one-year recommendation to perform in-house grounds maintenance for the season was approved at the cost of $24,700 in 2024, an exploration of the 2025 recommended seasonal options from staff included quotes to contract out the services.
However, the staff report stated further in-house maintenance would continue to be the most cost-effective option, which was approved by the committee.
Furthermore, the corporate services report provided an in-depth breakdown of all municipal initiatives where cemeteries were concerned, from fielding inquiries to on-site researching, acting as a liaison between funeral homes and families, and much more.
“Credit to those board members that used to sit on these volunteer cemetery boards. They did everything within their power,” said Norris. “It’s not like it’s a big cemetery operation.”
Norris, a former assistant manager for the Mount Pleasant Group of Cemeteries, reiterated a continued concern regarding the Care and Maintenance Fund — the allotment of funds from various sales toward cemetery upkeep.
“(Last year) we recommended back to the province … they have to top up that Care and Maintenance Fund so at least we can generate some revenue to offset the cemetery operation,” said Norris. “It’s another download from the province, and I think everybody’s starting, at the municipal level, to get to a point that (with realization of continual downloading) there has to be some sort of compensation.
“Had they even remotely picked it up, that they had maintained the Care and Maintenance Fund, say, at $250,000 or whatever, then it’s not a burden on the municipality.”
Norris estimated contracting out services could cost up to $70,000 per year in maintenance, and that remaining with in-house ground maintenance was his preferred option. He also noted, “at the end of the day,” an estate administration tax, which he colloquially referred to as a “death tax,” would be paid to the Ontario Ministry of Finance.
“And that ‘death tax’ goes into the coffers of both the provincial and federal governments,” said Norris. “It’s huge. Why they can’t contribute back to a Care and Maintenance Fund is beyond me.”
The 2024 cemetery operations overview report can be found in the agenda page on the Tay Township website.
Tay council meets for committee of the whole meetings every second Wednesday of the month, and regular council meetings every fourth Wednesday of the month. Archives and livestreams of council meetings are available through the Tay Township YouTube channel.