top of page

RULES & REGULATIONS

FOREWORD

Plum Creek Cemetery is a nonprofit corporation, having been granted a charter by the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, in 1907. There are no stockholders, bondholders, or any persons or corporations owning any interest in the Cemetery except the lot owners themselves. No dividends are paid, and the receipts are used solely for the maintenance, upkeep, and beautification of the grounds. The affairs of the Cemetery are managed by a Board of Trustees, all of whom are lot owners, and serve without compensation as a service for the benefit of all the lot owners.

Sale and Dissolution: It is contemplated that Plum Creek Cemetery, a Pennsylvania nonprofit corporation, shall exist in perpetuity. In the event, there is a sale of any or all of the corporation's assets or dissolution of Plum Creek Cemetery, no portion of any surplus funds shall go to the benefit of any person. The surplus funds shall be paid to a purely public charity as shall be selected by the members of Plum Creek Cemetery.

Although the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania require 15% of the purchase price of lots in cemeteries be set aside to provide for the perpetual upkeep, Plum Creek Cemetery deposits 33 1/3% of the purchase price in an irrevocable grantor trust at BNY Mellon. The income from the trust assures perpetual upkeep of the Cemetery. The Trust Fund thus set up is irrevocable and under no circumstances can the present Board of Trustees or any future Board withdraw all or any portion of the principal amount of this Fund.

Experience has shown that the best plan is for a lot owner to transfer the lot to the Plum Creek Cemetery in Trust, and provide and set forth who may be buried therein. In this manner, possible difficulties arising among the heirs (several generations after the decease) of the original owner may be prevented.

In order that the Cemetery grounds may be maintained so as to provide for the best interests of all the lot owners, the Board of Trustees has adopted the following Rules and Regulations.

 

RULES AND REGULATIONS
Effective September 21, 2015

 

  1. The name and address of every lot owner should be on record in the Cemetery Office, and in the event of a change of residence, the Business Manager should be advised at once of the new address.

  2. On the death of a lot owner, his heirs or next of kin should file their own claim and address at once with the Business Manager.  Should the deceased owner leave his/her lot (by will) to some designated person, a certified copy of the will must be submitted to the Business Manager's Office, so that transfer of ownership may be recorded on the Cemetery records if the Board of Trustees shall consent to such transfer.

  3. Orders or messages by telephone, email or other electronic medium are received at the risk of the sender.  All such messages should be immediately confirmed in writing, by mail or in person.

  4. In the event that more than one person may own a lot, no person other than a member of the immediate family of one of the owners may be buried therein without the written consent of all the owners and the approval of the Business Manager.

  5.  No transfer of lots is valid until entered on the Cemetery records and no transfer of a lot by sale or otherwise by a lot holder without the consent of the Business Manager will be recognized by the Cemetery (see Footnote 2).

  6. The spreading of cremated remains is strictly prohibited.

  7. Plum Creek Cemetery prohibits the planting of trees, shrubs, bushes, and other perennial type plant material.

  8. Any flowers or tributes placed upon any grave or lot may be removed by the Business Manager whenever, in his opinion, they become objectionable or unsightly.

  9. All flower planting and the placing of floral tributes is restricted to an area no more than 16" in front of the monument stone or bronze.​​

  10. Government markers made of either Granite or Bronze are acceptable and the installation is free; although, the cost of the foundation is the responsibility of the lot owner and must be paid for prior to installation.

  11. The Cemetery only permits the use of granite or bronze markers for memorialization, mausoleums, and niches.

  12. The Cemetery will conduct two cleanups during the year. All holiday decorations, wreaths, etc. must be removed by March 1st.  All summer and artificial flowers must be removed by October 1st.

  13. The Business Manager is charged with the enforcement of these Rules and Regulations and the general welfare of the Cemetery. The Business Manager is also authorized and directed to take such steps as necessary to preserve the peace and dignity of the Cemetery and to promote its general welfare.  In the event of a dispute, the ruling of the Business Manager must be complied with, subject to appeal to the Board of Trustees.

​

NOTE: If you are not sure about approved items for placing on gravesites,

contact the office at (412) 793-7666.

 

 

bottom of page