Town of Ripley Council members passed a motion stating that the town will discontinue perpetual care services in the East Ripley Cemetery at their meeting on May 8.

Ripley Supervisor Laura K. Pless said that general maintenance, including mowing, will continue at the cemetery, however, repairs to foundations or headstones are now the responsibility of the owner or surviving family members.

“Sometimes people will come to us about a headstone from 1925,” Pless said. “The problem is we don’t have the records that we would need.”

The town took over care of the East Ripley Cemetery in July of 2019. At that time, council members noted that “Once volunteer organizations do not continue upkeep of cemeteries, the responsibility falls to the municipality. Cemetery Associations are one of the service organizations losing members.”

In other business, council members accepted the resignation of two members of the Zoning Board of Appeals. The members who submitted their resignations were Lisa Babcock and Ellen Camp. Pless said the town will post the vacancies on their website to seek replacements.

Council members also approved a motion to change the schedule for large trash day on May 17 to include one pick-up site in South Ripley. Traditionally, there have been two pick-up sites in Ripley and one in South Ripley. However, council members decided to eliminate the South Ripley pick-up because very few people used it.

Pless explained that she received requests from several South Ripley residents asking to have the site for one more year. “I told them we would try one more year and then we would have two years of data to decide for 2026.” she said.

Pless also told council members that the town would apply once again for a CDBG grant to be used for updates on the sewer system. The town had applied last year, but was denied. “We’re ready to go as soon as the grant application process is available,” she said.

Town Clerk Ryleigh Enterline said that organization in the records storage room is continuing. They are looking at having a shredding day sometime in July.

Enterline said she and Deputy Clerk Nicole Gollhardt are “kicking around ideas “to revamp the website. “We’re not in charge of the website,” Enterline said. “We’re just trying to spruce it up a little bit and make it more friendly.”

Enterline also told council members that the town will be sponsoring a Rabies Clinic on Sept. 18. She also noted that the town office will be closed from Friday to Monday for Memorial Day.