The Watson Township Board Thursday night voted to enclose Hick Cemetery with 450 feet of two-rail vinyl fence and to contact snowplowing services for a flat fee of $2,100 over the coming winter.
The fence issue turned out to be a bit more contentious than expected when Steve and Nancy Counterman appeared at the meeting to ask questions and express reservations.
With tongue firmly planted in cheek, Nancy asked the board, “Why do you need a fence around that cemetery? Are you afraid someone might get out?”
Township Supervisor Pam Brown explained a that fence can be used to establish boundaries with neighboring property owners.
Insisting that few if any other area cemeteries have fences, Nancy asserted, “It seems like a big expense just for a fence.” She added that she believed upgrading the driveways in the cemetery was a higher priority.
The board approved the bid of $3,759.76 from Robert Galloway to install the fence and corner posts.
Trustee Rod Zeinstra three times in the meeting said, “Sometimes fences make good neighbors.”
Steve Counterman asked why a fence isn’t being installed at Miner Cemetery as well.
Zeinstra replied there isn’t enough money in the township budget to do both this year and perhaps Watson should make a point to plan for a fence next spring to enclose Miner.
Steve asked what caused Hicks Cemetery to be given preference over Miner for the project and Brown explained, “A lot of brush and trees had overgrown at Hicks and we had to have 20 headstones repaired. They were being swallowed up by the ground.”
Zeinstra summed it up by saying township officials determined there were greater needs at Hicks when the decision was made last spring, but he promised that Hicks would receive attention next year.
For snowplowing, the township decided to contract with Scott Langlois of ATS Enterprises for a seasonal contract rather than per plowing. Brown said it cost the township $3,145 two years ago during that horrible winter when they were still paying on a per-plowing basis.
