Sec. 30-24. - Regulations regarding historical or archaeological cemeteries or burial sites.

(a)

It shall be unlawful for any person to disturb, disrupt, excavate, deposit fill in or on, remove or destroy grave markers, burial objects or buried human remains, or conduct any other activities which would damage or diminish the integrity of any historic cemetery or archaeological burial site or family cemetery without first obtaining therefor a permit to alter or remove from the town council.

(b)

The town council may issue a permit to allow the alteration or removal of historic cemeteries, archaeological cemeteries or family cemeteries only after concluding, based on evidence submitted to the council at a public hearing, that all alternatives to the proposed activity have been examined and that no prudent and feasible alternative to the proposed activity exists or that such alteration only serves the interests, health, welfare and safety of the public, and is not for commercial expediency.

(c)

In order for the town council to clearly assess the proposed project, the following information shall be submitted, unless otherwise required by the town council:

(1)

Detailed site plans drawn to scale by a licensed professional registered land surveyor or professional engineer as applicable, at a minimum scale of one inch = 50 feet, showing the boundaries of the property in question, topographical contour intervals of no more than one foot, a surveyed boundary of the cemetery and a setback area of no less than 25 feet, and a proposed plan of all improvements proposed on the site which would necessitate disturbance of the cemetery.

(2)

If known a written description of the cemetery, its age and condition, historical importance, whether the cemetery is religious, family, organization, publicly owned or other kind of cemetery, a listing of names and vital dates of those interred as may be determined from grave markers on site, and a cemetery plan indicating position of graves and to the extent possible the identities of those interred.

(3)

A detailed site alteration plan indicating the extent of disruption of the cemetery, methods of construction or removal of human remains, reburial plan, including in text and drawing, the relocation of graves.

(4)

In the event of a family cemetery, a genealogical study to identify whether descendants of the families of the interred still reside in the state.

(5)

In the event of a religious cemetery, a listing of the religious organization that owns or maintains the cemetery.

(6)

Any further information and study the town council deems necessary to complete its consideration of the request to alter a cemetery in compliance with G.L. 1956, § 23-18-1 et seq.

(7)

Once a discovery of a previously unknown burial site is made or suspected, the owner or contractor shall immediately notify the building inspector, who in turn shall contact the state medical examiner and state historical preservation commission pursuant to G.L. 1956, § 23-18-1 et seq.

(d)

The town shall require the cessation of construction activities pending preliminary verification by the state medical examiner or historic preservation commission. If the site is verified as a human burial site, work within 25 feet of the site shall be halted unless or until a permit to alter or remove is issued by the town pursuant to the regulations of this article.

(e)

The owner shall be required at his expense to conduct an archaeological investigation of the area to establish the boundaries of the cemetery/burial sites via the least disruptive means feasible. The least disruptive means shall be determined in consultation with the state historic preservation commission (RIHPC). A survey report shall be produced incorporating the findings of the investigation in text and graphic form.

(f)

The applicant shall then submit the report and a detailed engineering plan as in subsection (c)(1) of this section of the proposed construction project, and all other activities on the property in question which in the opinion of the applicant necessitates disruption of the cemetery/burial site.

(g)

The applicant shall also submit a detailed site alteration plan proposal of the extent and method of removal of human remains and a reburial plan in text and drawing of the new gravesite.

(Code 1986, § 14-34)