6202 Charles St. Rockford, IL 61108 (815) 399-5011
office@arlingtonmemorialcemetery.com
The Arlington Pet Cemetery, which does business as the Charles Street Pet Cemetery is a separate business entity from Arlington Memorial Park. Charles Street pays rent to Arlington in exchange for a separate section of the cemetery, known as Petland, dedicated strictly to pets. Charles Street also pays Arlington for the use of their staff members and buildings. As such, the Arlington Memorial Park rules and regulations may also govern the cemetery business and when different the rules and regulations are set by the officers of the Charles Street Pet Cemetery it is in consultation with the Board of Trustees of the Arlington Memorial Park Association. Copies of Arlington Memorial Park’s rules and Charles Street Pet Cemetery's rules are available by stopping in or contacting the cemetery office.
Cemetery Courtesy: Please remember that Petland is in a contained area, on land owned by Arlington Memorial Park. Rules governing the conduct of visitors in the main cemetery apply to visitors to Petland. The entre cemetery is open from dawn until dusk, seven days a week. The cemetery office is located near the entrance to Arlington Memorial Park and is open Monday through Friday from 8am until 4pm, unless otherwise determined. The Office takes care of business for Charles Street along with Arlington Memorial Park.
Grounds: Charles Street Pet Cemetery rules and regulations are adapted from the Arlington Memorial Park rules and regulations.
Any person found on the grounds after closing hours will be considered a trespasser.
All persons entering upon the cemetery grounds shall conduct themselves with proper decorum, and any breach of the rule within the discretion of cemetery management may cause removal of the offender from the grounds.
Cut or artificial flowers are permitted to be placed in a hanging basket attached to a shepherd hook next to the marker. Absolutely NO wire, glass
of any kind, bottles regardless of material, cans, or crockery of any kind, and no easel type stands by the markers.
Planting is not permitted in the cemetery. Any planting, decoration, or other object(s) placed on or about a grave, lot or marker shall be removed when in the judgement of management such action is warranted. Also, rocks, bark, chips, concrete or other materials are not allowed for edging the markers or lots. All persons are forbidden to break, deface, or injure any tree, shrub, landmark, marker or memorial, or cemetery grounds. No outside gardener will be allowed to do any work in the cemetery.
The cemetery is not responsible for theft or damage to anything placed on the grave, lot, or marker. No boxes, shells, toys, discarded glassware, sprinkling cans, receptacles, lawn ornaments, or other miscellaneous items are permitted on any grave, lot, or trees. Visitors may not throw or scatter papers or other materials on the cemetery grounds. If anything is placed on any lot, space or marker shall be deemed offensive, improper, or injurious to the surrounding lots, or which violates any rule, the office and grounds crew shall have the right to enter upon said lot or space and remove said object(s),
Motor cars or other vehicles must always be kept under complete control. No vehicle shall be driven in the cemetery at a speed greater than 15mph. All vehicles shall be restricted to cemetery roads. DO NOT DRIVE OR PARK ON THE GRASS. No undue noise shall be permitted in operating a vehicle through the cemetery, and only licensed drivers may operate vehicles within the cemetery grounds. The cemetery reserves the right to exclude any vehicle which might, in any way, damage the roads within the cemetery grounds.
Bringing beer, intoxicating liquors, or illegal substances within the confines of the cemetery is strictly prohibited.
No hunting, trapping, or participation in any sporting event or game activities shall be permitted on the cemetery grounds.
All persons are strictly prohibited from picking flowers, removing turf, trees, or shrubs or in any way altering or marking any property within the entire cemetery grounds not specifically belonging to them, or in any way defacing the cemetery grounds.
All persons are reminded that the grounds of the main cemetery as well as the pet cemetery are devoted to memorializing the dead, and that the provisions and penalties of the law, as provided by the state, will be strictly enforced in all cases of injury, disturbance, and disregard of these rules.
Soliciting work in the cemetery by gardeners, monument firms, outside contractors, peddlers, or any other person is prohibited. No sign, notices, or advertisements of any kind shall be placed within the cemetery, unless the same are placed by the cemetery with its permission. The cemetery may remove and destroy any advertising without notice and without liability.
Animals brought into the cemetery must be on a leash. Please pick up after your pets.
No money shall be paid to the attendants on the grounds. The entire time of the persons regularly employed on the grounds belongs to Arlington Memorial Park and Charles Street Pet Cemetery. Visitors and lot owners must not otherwise engage them. All orders, inquiries and complaints must be left at the office.
No chemicals of any kind on the grass or around the markers on the cemetery grounds.
Injuries: The cemetery shall not be liable for any injuries sustained by any person on the cemetery grounds.
The cemetery shall not be liable for damage to or destruction of any structure, including but not limited to the bronze or concrete work on any lot from causes beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to the elements, Acts of God, the common enemy, thieves, vandals, strikes, lockouts, malicious mischief, explosions, war, riots, or by orders of any military or civil authority. In the event of such damage or destruction, Charles Street may at any time thereafter, give a ten day written notice by regular or certified mail of the necessity for the replacement, repair, resetting, or reconstruction thereof to the owner of the lot as shown upon it’s records, addressed to such owner at his address to replace, repair, reset or reconstruct the same within the period specified in said notice. The cemetery may at its discretion enter the said lot, cause the same to be repaired, reset, or reconstructed, and charge the expense thereof against
such owner, but nothing contained shall obligate the cemetery to render such service.
Burials: Burial of pets is ONLY allowed in the Petland Section. This is in accordance with Illinois state law which allows a cemetery to have a dedicated pet burial section but does not allow pets to be buried with humans in their spaces and/or lots. Pet burials, both full body and cremains, must be buried in a sealed poly box container. A current burial services list is available at the office or by contacting the office.
Markers: Pet markers must be made of granite or bronze and flush with the ground. Upright markers are restricted to certain, designated areas of Petland and require ownership of additional consecutive spaces and pre-approved by the cemetery office. While a party is not required to purchase a marker from the Charles Street Pet Cemetery, all markers in Petland must be approved and set by the cemetery staff, with a setting fee and care trust paid to the cemetery. Unapproved markers not set by the cemetery will be subject to removal then notification. Granite markers must be 4 inches in depth and bronze markers will be set on a concrete base.
Note: While you may not have your pet(s) buried in your space/lot, it may be possible to have a flat cenotaph memorial (a marker for a non-burial location) to the pet(s). You will need to discuss this option with the Cemetery Office to get specifics on what would be allowed and permission to have the memorial.
Care: The burial space will be assessed a care fee as will the marker at time of setting, even if purchased elsewhere. These are one-time fees we pay to Arlington, who in turn pays them along with their collected care fees to the state fund for perpetual care. The state mandated care fund is for future basic maintenance of cemeteries throughout the state in the event a cemetery is no longer active. The Charles Street Pet Cemetery is located on land owned by Arlington Memorial Park within the boundaries of the cemetery and developed sections of Arlington Memorial Park cannot not be redeveloped in accordance with current Illinois law on human cemeteries.
Decorating: We have a separate handout with our current decorating guidelines. It is posted at the Cemetery Office and available on request. In
part, the guidelines specify that a shepherd hook is allowed for hanging flowers, wind chimes, etc. from. No glass of any kind is allowed and will be removed if found. Statues, lawn ornaments, trellises and plaques that are not approved markers are not allowed and subject to removal. Spring clean-up is April 1st every year, regardless of the date Easter falls on. Remember that when planning Easter type decorations. Shepherd hooks and non-floral items on the shepherd hooks will remain during clean-up. All floral arrangements, wreathes, and garlands, real and artificial, will be removed even from the shepherd hooks along with any item on or around the marker. Anything you wish to keep must be removed by March 31st. Again, contact the office for the full decorating guidelines.
Cremation: The Charles Street Pet Cemetery offers pet cremation services for pets up to 125 pounds. We do individual cremation and use a double tagging system for identification. We do offer limited pick-up service for pets from the home or veterinary office for an addition fee. A list of our cremation prices is available at the office or by contacting the office.
We strive to keep cremations on a timely basis. Cremation can take a few days depending on the number and size of the pets at any given time and the staff’s availability. They are also Arlington Memorial Park staff, and the main cemetery has priority on their time. We have coolers where the pets awaiting cremation or burial are placed.
If a client wants an appointment cremation or to have their pet cremated ahead of other pets waiting in turn, they will be subject to additional charges. Cats, dogs, and certain breeds of giant rabbits will be subject to a doubling of the standard fee. Small exotics will be assessed a $100 fee in addition to their regular fee. Current prices are available at the office and upon request.
Storage of pets for burial or cremation: We understand that it can be difficult to come up with the necessary fees and/or emotionally prepare oneself for the final steps of a beloved pet. Past incidents have made it necessary to revise our policy so that pets are taken care of in a timely manner. In many cases, a client has 30 days from the date the pet is brought to the Charles Street Pet Cemetery to pay and arrange for burial or cremation. If there are no arrangements and payment made by day 31, a storage fee of $5 dollars per day will be assessed until arrangements and payment is made. On day
91, if the pet is still in our charge, the pet will be cremated regardless of whether it was in for cremation or burial. The owner will be notified of the cremation and has the option of receiving the cremains upon payment of the standard cremation fee for that pet and the storage fees accumulated between day 31 and 91. If unclaimed, the pet cremains will go into storage with its paperwork for one year. The owner will still have the option of reclaiming the cremains by paying for the cremation and storage fees during this time. After one-year, long-term storage arrangements or burial of cremains will be at the discretion of Charles Street Pet Cemetery. If the pet is brought in infested with fleas and/or maggots and/or in the process of decomposition, the owner has one month to pay the bill in full or pick up the pet and take it elsewhere. If the owner has not picked up the pet or paid the bill, the pet will be disposed by one of the means available by state law at the cemetery's discretion. Storage, burial, cremation or transportatin fees and disinfecting fees of the holding cooler will be accessed or waived at the discretion of the pet cemetery.
Modifications and Amendments: Because of continuous changes in customs, practices, economic conditions and products, the cemetery may and hereby expressly reserves, the right at any time, with or without notice owners and clients, to adopt new rules and regulations, or to amend and/or repeal any rule, regulation, and/or article, section, paragraph and/or sentence in these rules and regulations. The cemetery further reserves the right to modify and change all prices referred to herein without notice.
