St. Pauli Cemetery: Rules & Regulations

General

The St. Pauli congregation shall control, manage and operate the area plotted as the St. Pauli Cemetery.

The St. Pauli sexton shall oversee the day-to-day operation of the cemetery under the supervision of the church council.

Lot Purchases

• Persons desiring to purchase lots should contact the sexton or the church council.
• Those who are members of the St. Pauli congregation at the time of death shall be given (1) one lot free.

Lot Improvements

• No person, including lot owners, shall place any objects (i.e. shells, toys, etc.) on lots without permission of the sexton or church council.
• No person is permitted to erect fences or hedges on or around any lot.
• No mound on any lot shall be raised to a height in excess of three inches from the surface of the lot.
• No artificial flowers are permitted in the cemetery after June 10th in any year. If they are not removed by June 10th, the sexton or council will remove them.
• No planting of trees or shrubs is allowed on the lots without the express written permission of the sexton or church council.
• The church council reserves the right to remove or alter any tree, shrub, vine or memorabilia which may become unsightly, dangerous, not in keeping with the landscaping of the cemetery, or which makes mowing difficult.

Transfer of sites

No cemetery sites may be sold or otherwise disposed of, except by will or operation of law, without the approval of the church council. The council retains the first option to repurchase a cemetery site at fifty percent (50%) of the current lot price. The church council may use any of its funds for such repurchase and may hold such lot, or again sell and convey the same.

Interments

• Sites may not be subdivided, except that in the case of cremation. Two (2) burial urns may be placed on one grave site where a casket has not been placed. Nor shall the remains of more than one person be interred in any one site, except in compliance with applicable state statutes. It shall be the responsibility of the site owners and/or funeral director handling the said funeral to make all necessary arrangements for excavations. All interments must be made in accordance with all laws, ordinances, rules and regulations of the St. Pauli cemetery, the state of Minnesota, or any other regulatory agency.
• All burials shall require an outer burial container. Wood shall not be permitted, but material such as concrete and fiberglass shall be acceptable.

Disinterments

Written permission of the site owner and the next of kin shall be filed with the church council and all laws or regulations of the state of Minnesota or any other agency having jurisdiction over disinterment must be complied with prior to any disinterment within St. Pauli cemetery.

Perpetual Care

• Perpetual care shall mean mowing and general clean up of the cemetery. Perpetual care does not include the watering of the trees, shrubs or plants in urns or containers.
• As part of the perpetual care, the church council shall have the right to remove any tree or shrub upon any lot which has or shall become, by reason of age or other cause, unsightly or detrimental to the lot upon which it is situated or any adjoining lot or avenue.
• A person purchasing a site shall pay the entire sum for perpetual care per site to the cemetery fund. Monies earned by fund shall be used for the maintenance and perpetual care of the site.
• All income received from the perpetual care fund shall be used solely for the purpose of defraying the cost of caring for, maintaining and improving the cemetery sites.

Monuments and Grave Markers

• Monuments or markers constructed of any material other than stone or bronze will not be allowed. No monuments or markers may be constructed of limestone, sandstone, or any artificial material that will not assure relative permanency.
• All structures, to ensure sufficient support, must have foundations built on solid masonry, of a depth and size deemed proper by the church council. Foundations must be set level with the sod and be cut so as to go into the ground not less than four inches or more than eight inches. An apron of at least six inches in width shall be placed around said marker or monument, which shall be made of concrete or granite, which apron shall be level with the surface or the ground, and which shall be affixed to the marker so as to prevent grass, weeds or other vegetation from growing between the marker an apron.
• No monument or grave marker shall be in excess of four (4) feet from the base to the top.
• Monument companies erecting monuments in the cemetery shall be in compliance with the rules and regulations of the St. Pauli cemetery.
• No monument or marker may be placed unless the church council has approved its location and the full purchase price of the site has been paid.
• The site owner is responsible for any and all damage resulting to the cemetery or other lots during the placement of monuments or markers and during excavation of the gravesite.
• Vaults and mausoleums are not permitted in St. Pauli cemetery except by special permit granted by St. Pauli council.

Urns and Containers

• Perpetual care does not include watering and maintenance of plants in urns or containers. This is the responsibility of the lot owner. If plants in urns and/or containers are not watered and maintained for a period or 30 days or more, the sexton shall dispose of it in the manner determined by the St. Pauli council.
• The St. Pauli cemetery will not be liable for any vases, containers, urns and the like that may become misplaced, broken or stolen.
• Use of shepherd hooks or elevated plant stands is allowed, but St. Pauli cemetery reserves the right to remove such hooks or stands if they become unsightly or interfere with mowing and maintenance of the cemetery.

General Rules and Conduct

1. Motor vehicles may be driven within the cemetery subject to these conditions:

2. No person shall have in his or her possession a firearm or explosive, excepting an on-duty police officer and members of military organizations (i.e., National Guard, American Legion Honor Guard) at funerals and civic functions.

3. No person may disturb the quiet of the cemetery by noise or improper conduct of any kind.

4. Children under the age of 15 years must be under the direct supervision of an adult while in the cemetery.

5. All persons are prohibited from picking any flowers, injuring any tree, plant or shrub, or marring, defacing or removing any monument or stone or any structure within the cemetery.

6. No person, including lot owners, shall place any objects (i.e. shells, toys, etc.) on lots excepting items permitted (i.e. monuments, grave markers, urns, etc.)

7. No person is permitted to erect fences or hedges on or around any lot.

8. No artificial flowers are permitted in the cemetery after June 10th in any year. Lot owners shall remove artificial flowers/decorations by June 10th or the cemetery sexton shall dispose of same.

9. No planting of trees or shrubs is allowed on the lots without the express written permission of the cemetery sexton.

10. No person may allow any animal to run at large in the cemetery.