The Flandreau city council tabled the second reading of Ordinance 579 amending Title 10 of the cemetery ordinance at their meeting on July 17.

After the council voted at a June meeting to consider a gravesite abandoned after 20 consecutive years of no contact from the owner, a number of people voiced concerns thinking council members went in the wrong direction.

City Administrator Don Whitman received a letter from someone who lives in the Black Hills and owns cemetery lots in Flandreau. She felt the number of years should be closer to 80 or 100.

Though a certified letter would be sent before considering a lot abandoned, if an address isn’t current, the letter would come back as “undeliverable.”

In the same sense, if a noticed is published in the Enterprise, people who live out of town who don’t receive the paper would not know.

Mike Skroch, funeral home director and cemetery advisor for the city, said he thinks even more than the originally proposed 50 years would be more realistic.

“I think this started a few months ago by me asking the question of what to do with abandoned cemetery lots,” Skroch said. “We have lots of abandoned cemetery lots. But abandoned doesn’t fit in that 50-year window, not in the death industry. We’re looking at a much longer timeframe than that.”

He used the example of a man who purchased a lot 30 years ago, who may not need the lot for another 30 years.

That would make a 60-year window from when the lot was first purchased.

“We have to look at the situation of a young death because that is going to add considerably to the activity or lifespan of a cemetery lot,” Skroch said.

Alderman Bob Pesall said maybe they’re looking at it the wrong way and that the only time this comes up is when someone’s interested in a specific lot.

“Maybe the process ought to be having the city pursue abandonment when there’s interest in a lot and hasn’t had contact from the owner in [however many] years,” Pesall said. “If it’s been no contact for however many years, the city can attempt to contact the owners and if we can’t do that, they’re abandoned. Rather than them being presumptively abandoned and then it’s up to the people to contact us.”

The council voted to table the second reading until Paul Lewis, city attorney, rewrites the section of the ordinance with the suggestions made during the meeting.

The Flandreau city council also:

approved a pay request for Phase II of the water and wastewater replacement project for H&W Contracting totaling $215,990.73.

approved a CDBG drawdown request for the water portion of the previous pay request. The CDBG request totals $22,387.98.

approved a pay request from TE Underground for Phase III of the electric upgrade and burying project for $41,916.13.

approved an invoice for airport engineering for Helms & Associates. The invoice totals $7,250.40 for the mini-master plan and $6,228 for the airport layout plan.

approved a pay step increase for Luke Dailey, water and wastewater department operator, which will take him from $17.37 to $17.87 an hour.

approved a pay step increase for Gregory Hansen, foreman in the city’s electric department, taking him from $25.13 to $25.83 an hour.