Ross County Court works to help abandoned cemetery
CHILLICOTHE ― Despite the hurdles, stakeholders for the Floral Hills Memory Gardens in Chillicothe are trying to appoint a receiver to the cemetery.
The cemetery owned by Ronald Downey and Joseph Miller has been abandoned for over ten years and has since been cared for by volunteers, like Army Veteran Dave Robertson. The property owes almost $19,000 in back taxes, according to Ross County Treasurer Dave Jeffers.
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The court is considering appointing a receiver. The person or entity in charge of the cemetery would be able to utilize the interest generated from the trust fund to pay for monthly expenses. Timothy Long with Huntington Bank, where the cemetery's Endowment Fund is kept, said the trust generates about $800 to $900 a month in interest per month.
However, the job has garnered little to no interest, and the requests for it have been met with poor reception. If a receiver can't be found, it would be possible to ask Huntington Township to step in.
Using a list of possible receivers from 2020, Tammy Chavez with the Ohio Attorney General's Office contacted an entity in Columbus that expressed a willingness to assume the role, contingent upon specific conditions being fulfilled.
According to the company's website, New Perspective Asset Management (NPAM) consists of court-appointed receivers who specialize in handling distressed commercial assets. Chavez indicated that the company has certain inquiries that need to be addressed before assuming responsibility for the cemetery, one of which pertains to the availability of saleable lots.
To answer NPAM's questions, a thorough examination of Floral Hills' records is required. Judge Mike Ater said the court will need to "appease" the receiver to ensure the successful completion of the deal. Ross County Prosecutor Jeffrey Marks said the townships, "don't have the manpower to look through records."
Ater mentioned the possibility of the court hiring a temporary employee to search the cemetery records for necessary information. Ater gave Marks seven days to determine if a temporary hire would be possible. Ater also said he will reach out to local funeral homes to see if they would be available to look at the Floral Hills records.
Chavez said she will follow up with NPAM to get their exact list of questions and requirements. No decisions have been made yet regarding a receiver or NPAM.
Is Floral Hills public or private?
Ater said the court will hold monthly status conferences for Floral Hills. During the July 13 status conference, Ater asked parties Long, Chavez and Marks, who represents the Ross County townships, to determine if the cemetery is considered public or private.
Parties argued the private cemetery may be considered public because of the nature of the situation. Ater said it will be determined if the cemetery is public or private by the next status conference on Aug. 17.
Community members attend status conference
Roberston continues to attend every status conference about Floral Hills. He said most of his free time is spent researching ways to help the cemetery where his parents are buried.
Chillicothe resident Sharon Detty attended the July 13 conference. She has several family members buried at Floral Hills, including her daughter. She has six plots reserved and she still hopes to bury her loved ones there in the future.
She said her story is similar to many others in Chillicothe who have connections to Floral Hills. She said she has seen the cemetery turn from "beautiful to deplorable."
"This entire situation is so disrespectful. Not only to the deceased who are buried there, who left this world with the promise that their final resting place would be properly maintained but to the living relatives who remain," Detty said. "It is a disgrace to our community, the state and local governments to have let this happen in the first place, let alone have it go on for the past 11 years."
Ohio Representative Mark Johnson also attended the status conference. He said his office is "constantly" receiving calls about Floral Hills and he attended the conference to better inform others of the situation.
"Everyone wants this resolved but we need to follow the legal process," Johnson said. "It's more than Huntington Township... This is a community problem."
Will Huntington Township take Floral Hills?
On March 28, a status hearing was held in Ater's courtroom, where involved parties discussed asking Huntington Township to care for the property. Huntington was then added to the complaint.
Appointing a receiver would be ideal because of the financial burden the cemetery would put on Huntington Township. However, there are limited options for receivers.
In case Huntington Township takes possession of the cemetery, Marks said they are working on "trying to find different avenues of potential assistance to get over that initial hump" with funding maintenance, including asking the Ross County Board of Commissioners for help.
Representatives from Huntington Township attended the July 13 status conference. Huntington Township Trustee John Cottrill said, "Looks like [the cemetery] is gonna fall on us." No decisions have been made on which entity will take over care of the abandoned cemetery.
Megan Becker is a reporter for the Chillicothe Gazette. Call her at 740-349-1106, email her at mbecker@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter @BeckerReporting
This article originally appeared on Chillicothe Gazette: Ross County Court discusses receiver for Floral Hills Memory Gardens
