From the Board of Directors of Riverside Cemetery, Inc.
a private not-for-profit organization  February 11, 2011
To the Lot Owners possibly affected by the proposed Interstate Construction: Many lot owners who have family buried on their lots close to the interstate in both the Main Gate and North Gate sections of Riverside Cemetery have received a letter from William C. Harris who is representing the Georgia Department of Transportation at a hearing in the Superior Court of Bibb County on Tuesday, February 22, 2011 at 2:00 p.m. The purpose of the hearing is for the Court to review DOT's request for a permit to change the use of some land that is currently part of the Cemetery. The proceeding is required by Georgia law. The Cemetery will attend and participate in the hearing. The area of the proposed acquisitions and easements is small. However, the impact on the Cemetery and the individual lots and their owners is potentially great. The letter from DOT's attorney states in bold print, "There are not graves present in the required new right-of-way and easements, and no graves will be impacted or affected by this road project." We concur that, as presented, there are no graves within the land to be acquired either for right-of-way or easement. However, we are still working to determine whether any existing graves will be affected by the construction. The Cemetery, of course, has known of the interstate project for many years since its inception and has been trying to monitor its progress through direct contact with DOT and by attending informational meetings both locally and in Atlanta. However, we are not satisfied that we have received sufficient information to fully understand the project's impact. The hearing on February 22 only addresses the impact on the graves in the vicinity of the acquisitions and easements. At present, our primary concern is how the planned construction may impact existing markers, vaults and mausoleums nearest the interstate. Obviously, we are also looking at how the completed project may impact the Cemetery in general. Please be assured of the Trustees' concern and the Cemetery's intent to do whatever is possible to limit the project's impact on the Cemetery, both during construction and in the long term. While the Cemetery will have representatives at the hearing, you may want to attend to represent your interest as an affected lot owner in order to assist the judge in reaching his determination on whether to grant the permit at this time. The concerns of the Cemetery and that of the individual lot owners will weigh in the judge's evaluation of whether to grant the permit. Since owners of affected lots on which there are no interments did not receive Mr. Harris' letter, we are enclosing copies of Mr. Harris' letter and his attached maps depicting the proposed acquisitions and easements. Please feel free to share this letter and Mr. Harris' letter and attachments with any concerned lot owners that you know.  | 
