Bow board directs town manager to craft cemetery extended-hours waiver after public petition
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Summary
Select Board directed the town manager to consult counsel and draft a waiver allowing immediate family limited after-hours cemetery access; the board kept enforcement moratorium in place and asked for procedural safeguards after hearing public comment and a petition of 278 signatures.
The Bow Select Board voted to direct the town manager to work with counsel to draft a formal 'extended hours' waiver of liability that would let immediate family members access town cemeteries outside posted hours. The decision follows public comment and a petition urging more flexible access for grieving family members.
Lisa Wilson, a Bow resident, told the board she started an online petition that gathered 278 signatures in about three weeks and said grieving family members need reasonable access: “This petition was available for about 3 weeks, and I got 278 signatures,” she said. Deborah Smarr, another resident with a family member buried in a town cemetery, said requiring daily calls to dispatch would be unreasonable and suggested routine patrol checks instead: “I would much rather the police just drive through and ask me what I'm doing there and then move along.”
Board members discussed a waiver limited to immediate family, whether dispatch notifications should be mandatory, and how to document waivers so police know who is authorized to be on site after dark. One board member suggested putting a copy of an approved waiver on the plot record and providing a copy to the police chief; the police chief explained dispatch would contact the on-duty officer when notified.
The board unanimously approved the motion to direct the town manager to consult with counsel and prepare waiver language for the board to consider at the next meeting. The Select Board also voted to keep the temporary suspension of enforcement in place until a formal policy is adopted.
Separately, the board asked town counsel to redraft language in Ordinance 109-7 (grounds expulsion language) to explicitly prohibit alcohol consumption in cemeteries; the board debated whether the enforcement provision should read 'may' or 'shall' and asked counsel to propose language that meets the board’s intent.
The board said the waiver approach aims to balance bereavement needs with public-safety and abutter concerns; staff will present draft waiver language at a future meeting for formal adoption.