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NEWTON TOWNSHIP – The St. Michael and Lutheran cemeteries have seen several improvements and enhancements this summer thanks to funds from the cemetery levy.
Trustee Doreen Lutz said the road crews were able to pave the roads at the cemeteries off Newton Tomlinson Road, which were in need of repairs or were previously gravel.
A five-year, 0.5-mill levy covered the $26,600 project with Everbrite Inc. doing the paving. The levy was passed in 2014 and brings in about $63,000 for maintenance of the cemeteries.
Lutz said the levy provides funds for seven cemeteries in the township, seasonal workers and the upgrade of equipment.
She said Road Supervisor / Cemetery Sexton Mike Hall and Dan Smith, the township’s only full-time road worker, were determined to make the cemeteries functional for parking and what would work best in the cemeteries.
Besides the paving, Hall and Smith and seasonal workers did weed whacking and mowing.
“This was the trustees’ way of giving back to the residents and thanking them for making this possible with passage of the cemetery levy. We are glad the project is done,” Lutz said.
The cemeteries are Newton Falls East on North Canal Street, Pricetown Cemetery on Pritchard Ohltown Road, Lutheran Cemetery on Newton Tomlinson Road, Wilkerson Cemetery on Selkirk Bush Road, Duck Creek of Hallock Sook Road, Newton Falls West Cemetery on Ridge Road, and St. Michael’s Cemetery on Newton Tomlinson Road.
A separate group, the Newton Township Cemetery Association, has also stayed busy making improvements to cemetery markers and headstones that had fallen over or were needing of cleaning.
The association will work on the old chapel at East Cemetery off North Canal Street, which has suffered from dampness and drainage issues and needs electrical wiring work done. To help raise funds for projects, the association held its fourth annual fundraiser dinner at Newton Falls First Christian Church.
Lutz said the trustees appreciate the work done by the road staff and also the cemetery association.