Oakland Cemetery Commission

K L A A N D Oakland Cemetery Commission Meeting Agenda Tuesday, August 20, 2013 at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers Conference Room, 2nd Floor, 203 South Commerce, Russellville, AR 72801 Welcome Old Business: 1. Review and approve minutes of the July 16, 2013 Cemetery Regular Meeting. 2. Financial Report – Finance Director Jerry McKaughan 3. Report on Cemetery Brokerage Account – McKaughan 4. A request to further discuss the tree project. New Business 1. Discuss items not on the agenda. 2. Prepare items for handoff to City Council for its September 19, 2013 Meeting. 3. Tabled from the July 16, 2013 Meeting. Elect a Chairman to finish out the 2013 year. Adjourn.  Russellville Oakland Cemetery Commission Minutes August 20, 2013 The Russellville Oakland Cemetery Commission met on Tuesday, August 20, 2013 at 5:30 p.m., in the City Hall 2nd-Floor Conference Room at 203 South Commerce, Russellville, Arkansas. Attending were Alderman Steuber (Acting Chair), Commissioner Patricia Petray, Commissioner John Harris, and Commissioner Tom Hlass. Secretary Donna Eubanks, Commissioner Anna Fields, and Commissioner Mindy Hudson, Finance Director Jerry McKaughan, Director Lequitta A Jones, Mayor Bill Eaton, City Attorney Trey Smith, Walter Hudson, Marilyn Hill & Family, and Phil Sims of U of A Division of Agriculture Research & Extension. Absent: Alderman Richard Harris The meeting was called to order by Acting-Chairman Steuber at 5:30 p.m. Welcome The First Order of Business was NB #3 tabled from the July 16, 2013 Meeting to elect a Chairman to finish out the 2013 year. Commissioner Fields made the motion to appoint Commissioner John Harris as Chairman. Commissioner Hlass seconded the motion and passed unanimously. Old Business: The Second Order of Business (Agenda Item #1) was to review and approve minutes of the July 16, 2013 Cemetery Regular Meeting. Commissioner Steuber made the motion to approve the minutes as written. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Petray. Mr. Hlass said there were several changes on that he wanted to make. Director Jones asked Mr. Hlass to come by her office and together they would listen to the tape. The motion was amended by Commissioner Steuber that Jones and Hlass listen to the taped minutes and verify with the written minutes, and if no changes are needed the minutes stands approved. Commissioner Fields seconded the amended motion and passed unanimously. For recorded only: Commissioner Hlass said after the meeting to leave the minutes as written. And with that minutes stands approved. The Third Order of Business (Agenda Item #2) was the Financial Report by Finance Director Jerry McKaughan. Mr. McKaughan gave the financial report to include the balance sheet and statement of revenue and expenditures and stated both were in order. Secretary 1 Eubanks made the motion to approve as reported. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Petray and passed unanimously. The Fourth Order of Business was a report on the Cemetery Brokerage Account given by Finance Director Jerry McKaughan. Finance Director McKaughan reported the Charles Schwab Account balance as of 07/31/2013 is $195,183.57. Mr. McKaughan said currently we have $85,453.17 in cash that needs to be invested as soon as possible. Mr. McKaughan said the Arkansas Cemetery Board will hold a meeting on Friday, September 6, at 9:00 a.m., and if any commissioners are interested in going get with Director Jones or Finance Director McKaughan. The Fourth Order of Business was a request to further discuss the tree project. Chairman Harris said there had been a fair amount of discussion about the trees at the Oakland Cemetery. Chairman Harris said he had been involved with some arborists and had gotten some quotes and conditions of some trees and things. This goes back to last fall when Mike Roys asked Phil Sims to make a report on the status or the condition of the trees in the cemetery- and things went from there. Chairman Harris said he had talked to a lot of people, and had talked to Phil Sims about his farm, etc…, but he had not spoken to him about the cemetery trees. This afternoon Chairman Harris said he talked with Phil Sims and the impression he had is not what we have been saying that we were under the impression that the magnolia trees and the oak trees were in poor health, had a lots of rot and dead spots in them and they need cut down. Chairman Harris said Phil Sims said that is really not the interpretation. Mr. Phil Sims said he’s with the county extension office representing the U of A Division of Agriculture Research & Extension. Mr. Sims stated he is trained in general agriculture, forestry, grew up on a farm that produced white oak and other type of timber, and does not pretend to be a tree expert. He said he had advised other cemeteries one of which is west of Dover the New Hope Cemetery. Mr. Sims said if he recalled correctly that sometime last fall he was contacted by Mr. Roys. Mr. Roys asked me to come out and walk with him through the cemetery to look at the trees that had come under question from members of the board and some different concerns that he expressed from family member about the trees. Mr. Sims said things are seldom black and white. The discussion you guys are having are seldom black and white they fall somewhere in the gray area. And gray area lead to interpretation. Mr. Sims said the point he wanted to make is I was not asked to make a report, I was asked to come out to the cemetery and walk around and give some advice and opinions. Mr. Sims said he climb no trees, had no ladder, drove around, walked around, and never wrote a report or followed up with a report. Mr. Sims said trees have to be maintained to stay healthy. Sometimes we let trees go without proper maintenance and we get into a situation where they are in decline. And when we got out there that is what he found, not trees that are dead, not trees that are dying, but in decline. That means the trees need to be pruned, keep them healthy, keep disease from entering into that tree further. It you have a limb on a tree, decay and rot continues to go into that trunk and decay get larger. So ignoring it is not an option. We ignore these problems and they are just going to be more problems down the road. In a tree it may be several years before we see the end results. And that is what Mr. Roys and I talked about, we walked around and looked at trees that had obvious limbs that have weight. The more weight on trees the more it pulls down. When you trim a tree properly it seems like the tree breaths better. If a tree limb is improperly trimmed it creates more problems. There are better trees than others for putting in parks and cemeteries, etc… When I walked around out there there are some trees that have decay in them and those need pruned and some of that decay needs to come out. Then there are trees that have been pruned in the past that have been improperly pruned and the limb not 2 taken back to a V or to the main trough. To take a limb out and if you didn’t nub it off all that energy from that tree shoots out the end of the limb and you end up with numerous shoots which those make limbs and before long they are 10 feet long. So what you have done is created huge amount of weight. So, you have got to address these kinds of issues. But as far as seeing trees out there the only tree that I recall that we talked about having completely removed was junk trees or weeded trees. We talked about wild trees coming up and pushing up other things. We talked about doing a plan over several years because it is costly when you get into pruning and removing if you get it done correctly. Mr. Sims cautioned when planting a tree asked yourself what is it going to be in 50 years. We have good resources to help you plan for the future. Mr. Sims said they are trees out there that needs removed, but most what we talked about where trees that needed to be properly pruned and maintained and there is right ways and wrong ways to do that. We have those resources for you and are here to help. Chairman Harris asked Mr. Sims was it fair to say (from 2 certified arborists) that removing dead branches, excess water sprouts, raising canopy, which is what he called end-weight reduction, which is the balance of the tree, we could save the tree? Mr. Sims said the oak tree that is so large it you notice on those lower limbs that is a prime example of weight reduction. They have been pruned over time where they just went out there and cut them off and now you have these massive growths. Chairman Harris asked Mr. Sims if these trees were trimmed properly would be okay to save these trees? Mr. Sims said there is no reason to take those trees out. Mr. Sims further stated that Mr. Roys did indicate that the cemetery was responsible for damages to tombstone and walls in there. Mr. Sims said that maybe where Mr. Roys got the impression that we need to take out the trees. Further, Mr. Sims said he could assure us that taking out weight (end-weight reduction) are what those trees need. Mr. Sims said in choosing a tree service always ask for a business card and asked if they are bonded and certified. Mr. Sims said just because a tree had been pruned incorrectly in the past does not mean it can’t be correctly pruned now. Chairman Harris said he had had four people say that the trees are healthy and didn’t need to be totally cut down. The first two worked for the forestry service and the last two were certified tree arborists. Ms. Patty Erwin, Urban Forestry Coordinator, Certified Arborist with the Arkansas Forestry Commission, recommended when we have the trees pruned or trimmed that we have a certified arborist to do the work. Mr. Harris said he had two quotes from certified arborists that have professional quality training so you can’t get any better than that. Mr. Harris said while he was at the cemetery with Mr. Gibby d/b/a Arkansas Tree Preservation that he pointed out an elm tree almost on the curb on Detroit to the south of the cemetery that needed to come down. Mr. Harris referring to the Marilyn Hill family, the oak tree close to their family plot, just needed pruned correctly. Mr. Harris said these people know how to do that, and if we elect to go that route that we do have qualified people to do that. Mrs. Marilyn Hill said she did not want all the trees in the cemetery cut, trimmed yes!!! She said her whole family is buried out there from back to her grandfather and if she had wanted to bury them somewhere where there are no trees she would have gone somewhere where they have god-awful cedar trees. I just don’t want someone to go out there and just mow all the trees down. Mrs. Hill’s daughter said their concern was cutting down all the trees- just want them pruned. Commissioner Steuber with Commissioner Fields agreeing their concerns are the damages that could occur to the old monuments that cannot be replaced. Alderman Steuber referenced city hall; the City of Russellville would have been better off financially if they had took a bull dozer and dozed it down and built a replica, but what would have gotten built would not have been an historical building. Further, Mr. Steuber asked City Attorney Smith if we have any obligation to protect those tombstones. City Attorney Smith said if you want to protect the tombstone you can but you don’t have to. 3 Commissioner Fields said she felt that it is my duty to protect those tombstones. She said she felt as a commissioner that is her job to maintain those tombstones. Commissioner Harris addressed Commissioner Fields, if you assume the responsibility of all those tombstones out there that is a tremendous liability in the next 50 years. Mr. Harris said I don’t think that is in our scope of what we are suppose to be doing to do that. Mr. Harris said I don’t’ think there is any place that says we have to replace a tombstone to its original content. Commissioner Fields said she didn’t say back to its original content. Ms. Petray asked if the City could insure the tombstones. Chairman Harris said he had talked to Brown and Brown Insurance since it had been brought up as maybe homeowner’s insurance policy would cover tombstone if they are damaged. They said yes some of the insurance coverage that they write is covered sometimes up to $5,000. Alderman Steuber said it’s not the new tombstones that concern me it’s the old ones. If a two- year-old tombstone gets completely torn up you can go get a new one just like it and put back, but you can’t go get one just like those 1870’s and put them back. Commissioner Hudson said that is a good reason for us to have the trees properly groomed. She said she didn’t think we should have to cut them down. The historical value of the cemetery and the headstones are very important to me too, but that is not a reason to remove the trees. We need to maintain the trees and keep them cleaned out underneath the trees. Chairman Harris said he had two quotes; one verbal and the other from Arkansas Tree Preservation. The other quote was from a certified arborist that Patty Irwin recommended who lives in Fayetteville his quote was basically for four trees estimated cost between $2000 – 2500 for him to do the job but because he was coming down here he would need somebody else to haul off the debris. Arkansas Tree Preservation is on Page 5. Mr. Harris went over the bid. Also he wanted to point out Notes: If you would like to hire me to supervise another crew to perform the work, my hourly rate is $35hr. Mr. Harris said his guys would come on an annual basis for a little amount of money. The one elm list on the quote and the one sweet gum is not included in the bid. The half magnolia tree is not included because he seen no way to save it. Chairman Harris said if we approve these three trees and sometime this year or next few months go make a thorough assessment if there is another tree or two that we need to look at. How do you want to proceed? The commissioner had a lengthy discussion on other trees in the cemetery. Secretary Eubanks in summary of what Chairman Harris was saying is we could do all of these trees that is listed (Arkansas Tree Preservation) the way the arborist has mentioned for the same amount of money or less than what we have already appropriated. Commissioner Hudson said she didn’t think we could jump ahead and look at the other trees that we are talking about yet. She said we need to take care of what you guys already have on the board- what we have in front of us now. Alderman Stueber said if we take care of what we got now and then you come back a little later and want to take some more out or whatever. You got another battle to fight. Chairman Harris said if we get the major issue corrected then 4 5 Commissioner Fields said if they can prune them and continue to have them checked every year she said she would be all for that. Commissioner Petray agreed. Director Jones asked City Attorney Smith since Albert’s Tree Service bid on the tree project, and won the bid, and was stopped on site by the Mayor Eaton is it okay to hire someone else to come in there and start cutting the trees or trimming? He cut down one tree and started on another and he was stopped. Commissioner Hlass asked why he was stopped? Alderman Steuber said the Mayor stopped him. Commissioner Harris said this bid does not include taking down the half tree Magnolia tree, but I could probably get a bid on it. Director Jones asked why did we jump from the three trees to the five trees and not include the half tree that should have been addressed here. Mr. Harris said he said he didn’t think it could be saved and it was probably an oversight on his part or mine. Mr. Harris said he was thinking that Albert’s Tree Service was going to come back in and finish off that half tree. Director Jones said that is the issue I have is bidding something out and then the Commission going through the proper channel and then being stopped, and then we are starting right back up like a whole new ballgame. Secretary Eubanks asked Director Jones if she was looking at the arborist paying him $35.00 and hour to supervise Albert’s. Director Jones said that is an option. Commissioner Petray asked City Attorney if Albert’s would have any legal action against us. City Attorney Smith asked what Albert’s was suppose to do. Alderman Steuber said he was suppose to take out those four trees. The City Council appropriated $11,000 plus dollars based on his bid, they appropriated that money for him to take those trees out. City Attorney Smith asked how many trees did he get down. Alderman Steuber said he got 1 ½ and was paid approximately $5800. Chairman Harris said we need to figure out who is going to take down the ½ tree. Chairman Harris said he felt Mr. Gibby would get the right balance and everything on the trees and to direct someone else he questioned that process. Commissioner Hudson would it be cost effective or would it end up being more expensive to have Albert’s come it. Mr. Harris said there is a possibility that it would wind up being more expensive. Mr. Harris said Alberts was paid $5800 or $6000 for a tree and one half. Director Jones said but he pulled all of his equipment in there and there is a lot to the setup. It was inconvenient for him. Mr. Harris said it you are taking a whole tree down there is a lot to a set up, but what we are talking about here wouldn’t be near the bulk of limbs and trunks and everthing else. Commissioner Petray said he pulled all his equipment in there and then got to do half the job. Commissioner Hudson asked if we could find out whether we do have any more obligations with him or cut him free. City Attorney Smith said we do have an obligation to him to agree to what he has done and then release him if you are talking about the same trees on this bid that was on his bid that he was cutting down. Commissioner Hudson said but we are not talking about cutting them down now. Alderman Steuber said can we legitimately take the funds that was appropriated to cut them down and do something else with those funds. City Attorney Smith said you need to get ahold of Albert’s and him be told that we have change our minds to trimming the trees and Albert’s 6 would have to agree for services rendered that that’s it that we don’t need him for anything else that we are going to trim instead of cutting New Business The First Order of Business was to discuss items not on the agenda. - None The Second Order of Business was to prepare items for handoff to the City Council for its September 19, 2013 Meeting. - None Adjourned 7 8