Section 15-2117. Cemeteries

1.  Whenever  for the purposes of title 21 of this article it shall be
  necessary to use any portion of any lands or premises  now  occupied  by
  graves, burial places, cemeteries, or other places of interment of human
  remains, the board may acquire the same in the same manner as other real
  estate  may  be  acquired  by  it.  Provided,  however, that if lands or
  premises so occupied and sought to be acquired are not within a cemetery
  under the actual control and management of a then existing religious  or
  cemetery  corporation, and proceedings shall have been instituted by the
  board for their acquisition under the eminent domain procedure law,  the
  court,  if  satisfied  at  any stage of the proceedings, that the public
  interests will be prejudiced by delay, may, by order,  direct  that  the
  board  may  enter immediately on such lands and premises, and, after the
  provisions of subdivisions 4 through 8 of this section and sections  304
  and 404 of the eminent domain procedure law have been complied with, may
  devote  the  same  to  the  public  use  specified in the petition, upon
  deposit with the court of a sum to be fixed by the court;  but  no  such
  order  shall  be  made  except  upon  notice of the application therefor
  served and posted as hereinafter provided.
    2. Such notice shall be served as follows: If any  of  the  owners  or
  their  places  of residence are unknown, notice addressed, generally, to
  all owners of and persons interested  in  the  lands  used  for  graves,
  burial places, cemetery purposes or places of interment within a certain
  lot,  tract or parcel of land, to be described with sufficient certainty
  to identify it, shall be published in the time and manner prescribed  by
  subdivisions  4  through  8  with respect to the notice therein provided
  for. Owners, if any, whose names and places of residence are  known  and
  who reside within the state, shall be served with such notice personally
  or  by leaving the notice at the abode of the owner to be served, with a
  person of suitable age and discretion residing therein. Owners, if  any,
  whose names and places of residence are known and who reside without the
  state,  shall  be  served  with  such  notice  by mail, the notice to be
  deposited in a post office in the state, addressed to the  owner  to  be
  served,  and  inclosed in a securely sealed postpaid wrapper. The notice
  also shall be posted conspicuously in ten places in each town  in  which
  the  lands  are  located, at least twenty days before the time of making
  the application. If the notice be published, the  time  for  making  the
  application shall be not less than eight days nor more than sixteen days
  after the last publication, and in any case personal service, if any, or
  service  by  leaving  at the owner's abode, shall be made at least eight
  days, and service by mail, if any, at least thirty days, before the time
  of making the  application.  If,  in  the  condemnation  proceeding,  an
  attorney  has been appointed by the court to represent defendants served
  with the original notice otherwise than personally,  under  the  eminent
  domain  procedure  law, the notice also shall be served on him, at least
  eight days before the time of making the application.
    3. The notice shall specify the relief sought and the time  and  place
  of  making  the application. The papers or proofs submitted to the court
  on the application shall include due proofs of the service  and  posting
  of  the notice and proof, by affidavit, that the persons, if any, served
  personally or by leaving at their abodes or by mail  constitute  all  of
  the  owners  of  and  persons  interested in the lands so occupied whose
  names and places of residence are known, or, if  none  were  so  served,
  that all of the owners are unknown, and if certain owners were known but
  not their places of residence, and therefore were not served, personally
  or by mail, that fact and the names of such owners shall be stated. Such
  affidavit  also  shall  set forth the extent of the inquiry to ascertain
  the names and places of residence of the owners. The provisions  of  the

  eminent  domain procedure law, as to matter subsequent to the deposit of
  such moneys shall apply hereto, except that  the  general  fund  of  the
  district  shall  be applicable to the payment of any deficiency judgment
  rendered pursuant to such section.
    4.  The  board  having  so  acquired  title, or the right of immediate
  entry, shall cause to be published in two newspapers in the county where
  such burial place or places or graves are situated, which shall  in  its
  judgment  be best calculated to notify the persons or parties interested
  or entitled to such notice, which notice shall describe the location  of
  such  burial  place, cemetery or grave in such manner as to sufficiently
  identify the same. Such publication shall be made once in each  week  in
  each  of  the  newspapers  for  the space of four weeks, and such notice
  shall also contain a statement to the effect that any person or  persons
  legally entitled to direct as to the disposition of any such remains may
  remove  the same to any other cemetery or burial place within sixty days
  after the last publication of such notice, if they so elect, but without
  expense to the board therefor. From and after the period of  sixty  days
  from  the  last  date  of  publication, the board shall advertise in the
  state paper and a newspaper published in the county or counties in which
  the cemetery or cemeteries are situated for bids for the removal of such
  remains  by  contract,  and  their  proper  reinterment  as  hereinafter
  provided.
    5. All removals and transportation of such human remains shall be done
  in accordance with the provisions of the Public Health Law and the local
  rules  or ordinances of any town, city or village wherein such cemetery,
  burial ground or graves shall be located or wherein any of such  remains
  may  be  reinterred.  The board may acquire such other lands as it deems
  necessary within the county or in an adjoining county where such  burial
  place  or  places  or graves are now located for the purpose of properly
  reinterring such removed remains, which lands shall be acquired  in  the
  same  manner as provided by title 21 of this article for the acquisition
  of other lands, title to be taken in the name of  the  particular  river
  regulating  district,  but  lands  shall  not  be  acquired  within  the
  corporate limits of a village or city except within  the  bounds  of  an
  existing  cemetery  unless  by  consent  of the board of trustees of the
  village or common council of the city or other authorities  within  such
  village  or  city  occupying  similar  positions as trustees or aldermen
  respectively.
    6. The lands so acquired shall be  suitable  and  properly  fenced  or
  inclosed,  and  in such manner as to permit of proper ingress and egress
  thereto before the final completion and payment for such work,  and  the
  expense  therefor shall be included within the estimate and contract for
  such removal. All the bodies removed by such contractor, or by order  of
  the board shall, when distinguishable, be incased each in a separate box
  or coffin, and each monument, headstone, footstone, slab, board or other
  designation  or  distinguishing mark shall be properly removed and reset
  at the grave of each body at the time of such  reinterment.  Members  of
  the same family shall be interred in contiguous graves.
    7. Whenever any person or persons legally entitled to direct as to the
  disposition  of  any  remains  now  interred in such cemeteries, burying
  place or graves shall request the board, in  writing,  to  reinter  such
  remains  in  any  other  cemetery or burial plot, within the same county
  where such cemetery, burial place or graves sought  to  be  removed  are
  located or in an adjoining county, the board shall cause such remains to
  be  interred  where  requested within the same county or in an adjoining
  county, and shall carefully and properly remove  such  remains  to  such
  burial  plot and properly reinter the same, but no payment shall be made
  for a grave or graves or burial plot for  such  reinterment  other  than

  that acquired by the board as hereinbefore provided. Whenever any person
  or persons legally entitled to direct as to the disposition of any human
  remains  exhumed  or  to  be  exhumed from any cemetery, burial place or
  graves  as herein provided, desire to remove the same for reinterment to
  any burial plot or cemetery not within the same county from  which  such
  remains  were exhumed or in an adjoining county as herein provided, such
  person or persons so entitled to designate such other  burial  place  or
  plot shall be permitted to remove such exhumed remains from such county,
  subject  to  the  written consent of the board and the provisions of the
  Public Health Law, and the local rules or ordinances of any  town,  city
  or  village  wherein  such  cemetery,  burial  ground or graves shall be
  located, or wherein such human remains may be reinterred, but no portion
  of the expense of such transportation or burial in another county  other
  than  an  adjoining  county shall be borne by the board. The board shall
  pay all expenses connected with such removal, out of the general fund of
  the district in the same manner as other payments are made.
    8. Whenever any lands acquired  by  the  board  for  the  purposes  of
  reinterment  of human remains as herein provided, and all the remains so
  interred have been exhumed  from  a  cemetery,  burial  place  or  grave
  belonging  to  a  corporation organized under the Religious Corporations
  Law, the Membership Corporations  Law,  the  Not-For-Profit  Corporation
  Law,  or  by  special  act,  or belonging to a town or board of trustees
  elected pursuant to the provisions of the Town Law, or to a  village  or
  city,  the  board  shall  by  a  proper resolution, after completion and
  acceptance thereof and final payment for all work performed as  provided
  in  this  section,  execute and deliver in the name of the district, and
  without expense to the  grantee  therefor,  to  the  trustees  or  other
  governing body of such corporation, by whatsoever name or title they may
  hold  office, or to the board of trustees of a town burial ground, or to
  a duly incorporated cemetery association, and  to  their  successors  in
  office,  a  quitclaim deed covering the lands so acquired, together with
  all structures erected thereon; and where such lands  were  so  acquired
  for  the  purposes of reinterment of human remains exhumed from a public
  or private cemetery, burial place or grave which shall have been used by
  the inhabitants of any town in this state as a cemetery or burial ground
  for the space of fourteen years and  not  having  a  board  of  trustees
  pursuant  to  the  provisions of the Town Law, the board shall by proper
  resolution as provided by title 21 of this article, after completion and
  acceptance thereof, and final payment for all work as  by  this  section
  provided,  execute  and  deliver  in  the name of the board, and without
  expense to the grantee  therefor,  a  quitclaim  deed  or  other  proper
  release  to such town wherein such lands so acquired as provided by this
  section may be situated, and such cemetery or burial  place  shall  from
  and  after  the execution and delivery thereof be deemed to be vested in
  such town, and shall be subject in the same manner  as  other  corporate
  property  of  towns,  to the government and direction of the electors in
  town meeting, excepting, however, that where such lands so acquired  for
  the  purposes set forth in this section are situate within the corporate
  limits of a village or city,  such  quitclaim  deed  or  release  herein
  provided for shall be executed and delivered to such village or city and
  thereafter  be  and  become  the  property  of  such village or city and
  subject to  the  laws  governing  such  village  or  city,  and  further
  excepting,  however, that the board, subject to the approval of the town
  board, or city or village authorities herein referred to, shall have the
  right to convey such lands so acquired,  together  with  all  structures
  erected  thereon,  to a duly incorporated cemetery association. From and
  after the date of the execution and delivery by the board,  as  by  this
  section  provided,  of the quitclaim deed or release, the board shall be

  deemed to  be  divested  of  all  right  and  title  to  such  lands  so
  quit-claimed  or  released  and  shall  not thereafter be liable for the
  care, custody, maintenance and control thereof. This  section  does  not
  limit  any  existing rights of burial, or removal of remains under other
  provisions of law applicable thereto.