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are piles of tombstones everywhere. We spoke with the trustee of the cemetery and got a contract that <br />allowed us to mow the cemetery. We have found tombstones now that we didn't even know existed. <br />`JULIE SCHUTTE: There are red flags that note where some of the graves are. Our office has a list of the <br />known headstones; but, we do not have a grid or a map showing where the original graves are located. <br />SHANE BARTMESS: How do we make the tomb stones that are already in piles at least presentable? <br />Does the commission have any ideas on how to do that? <br />JOHN OXIAN: What you need is a fence around the cemetery. I approached Meijers when they were first <br />going to come to South Bend, to see if they would be willing to donate money to install a fence around the <br />cemetery. I did this; because, I wanted to stop them from encroaching into the cemetery. The library is <br />going to be encroaching into the cemetery as well. I think what you need to do is approach both Meijers <br />and the library to donate money so that a fence can be installed around the cemetery. <br />SHANE BARTMESS: People are using the western side of the cemetery as a dumping ground for old <br />Christmas trees, trash bags, etc. This has been an ongoing problem for the cemetery. You would think that <br />with people coming and going from the gas station that somebody would pay attention to this; but they <br />don't. <br />JOHN OXIAN: That's why I think you should contact them and try and get them to do something; because, <br />this is not right. Usually when you put up a gas station, you're supposed to put up a fence. I know you're <br />supposed to put up fence when it's by a residential area; but, I don't know if this applies to a cemetery. <br />JOANN SPORLEDER: Who actually owns the cemetery? <br />SHANE BARTMESS: I was told by our trustee, Dan Bader, that when a cemetery becomes vacated or <br />abandoned, the township that the cemetery is in becomes responsible for it. <br />JOHN OXIAN: It belongs to German Township. German Township owns two cemeteries. <br />SHANE BARTMESS: They own the cemetery on the north side off of Adams Road, near the Adam and <br />Orange intersection, and they also own this cemetery. <br />JOHN OXIAN: I would like to have Wayne Doolittle oversee the work that is being done over there. <br />Joann Sporleder made the following suggestions: <br />1. A record should be made of the existing tombstones in the cemetery and the <br />names that are on them. <br />2: A map should be made of the cemetery showing the correct burial sites for those <br />existing tombstones that actually mark a grave. <br />3. The tombstones that do not mark a grave should be put together in an area of the <br />cemetery, so that they can still be viewed by others. <br />John Oxian also made a suggestion that Wayne Doolittle take pictures to show where all of the existing <br />tombstones are located, so that there will be a pictorial file available for future reference. <br />VIRGINIA O'HAIR: Are there any signs posted saying no dumping? <br />SHANE BARTMESS: No, there are no signs. <br />MARTHA CHOITZ: I will make a motion on application 2004-0305, that the following application items <br />be approved by the commission: <br />1. Trim dead branches and remove fallen limbs from mature trees. <br />