The Santa Maria Cemetery District Board of Trustees unanimously agreed Monday to petition the county for an increase from three to five members, in the hope of escaping a takeover by the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors.

If the county received the request by the end of the day Monday, then the supervisors could vote today to set a hearing for May 6 to consider the increase in membership, according to the Board of Supervisors' agenda.

The supervisors' agenda also states that the county would hold a public hearing May 6, consider a vote to adopt a resolution increasing the membership, and then appoint two new members for four-year terms.

The cemetery board's motion was passed Monday without discussion, but after the vote, a person in the audience asked why it passed now, instead of previously, when the item could not get support from the cemetery board.

Board President Lavonne McBroom replied, “We decided it was time, because this issue has been very hurtful to a lot of people. This is a small community and no one deserves that kind of hurt.”

At the last county board meeting, Supervisor Joe Centeno of Santa Maria cited numerous complaints against the cemetery board members over the last year and a half, and made the motion to take over the cemetery district's board of trustees. The California Health and Safety Code states that the board of supervisors can appoint themselves as the board of trustees for the district and appoint new members.

The code also states that the cemetery district can petition the board of supervisors to increase the number of its members to five, which was the hope of the supervisors to avoid the potentially awkward takeover.

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District Trustee Phyllis Tiegs said the problem is not three members or five members, but one member.

“I think we've run a good operation here for many years,” she said. “Ever since Lori (Macagni) came on we've had nothing but trouble.”

Macagni, however, the most recently appointed member of the board, said she's very excited about what she called a “move into the 21st century.”

“I hope Supervisor Centeno appoints two people that are as interested as I am in improving the cemetery,” Macagni said.

Others in the audience Monday said they were glad for the additional members.

Wanda McDonald of Santa Maria said she's just sorry it took the threat of a takeover for the board to petition for two more members.

“I'm thrilled,” she said. “But it could've happened two months ago without the supervisors' involvement.”

“It's a long time coming,” Maggi Hanes said. “One hundred years is a long time to operate the same way.”

The Santa Maria Cemetery District was recognized by the county in 1917, but it can trace its origins back to 1883, district manager Sherry Moss said.

The district includes the Santa Maria cemetery on the west side of South College Drive just south of Battles Road, and the 120-year-old Pine Grove Cemetery in Orcutt at Stubblefield and South Bradley Roads.

According to the staff report prepared for the supervisors' most recent meeting, the county wanted to increase the number of members on all local cemetery boards from three to five in order to avoid violations of the Ralph M. Brown Act, which since 1953 has set protocols for meetings of public officials.

With only three members, a meeting of just two constitutes a quorum that requires an advance notice of a public meeting.

The county supervisors meet at 9 a.m. today in the Board of Supervisors Hearing Room at 105 E. Anapamu St. in Santa Barbara.

The Santa Maria Cemetery District's next board meeting is at 10 a.m. May 19 at 1501 S. College Drive, just north of Battles Road.

Sam Womack can be reached at 739-2218 or swomack@santamariatimes.com.

April 15, 2008