The coo of a lone mourning dove and the rustle of leaves through the old-growth trees broke the otherwise-serene silence of sunset at Riverside Cemetery Monday night. Neither road nor user noise from adjacent Broadway and Harris streets and nearby Nelson Park interrupted the peace at the sprawling burial ground with tombstones dating back to the 1800s.

All was still.

Just an hour earlier, in a low-key unanimous vote, this quiet, publicly owned graveyard got the city commission’s blessing to receive a $36,600 technological upgrade that city officials hope will make the process of searching for and purchasing a burial plat much easier.

It was one of three mid-year budget amendments the commission approved in a short-but-animated meeting July 22. The commission also approved $62,378 to purchase two new BMW motorcycles for the Mount Pleasant Police Department, and to allocate up to $40,000 in pre-approved funds to replace an existing – and unsafe – 2011 Ford Taurus being driven by MPPD detectives.

The cemetery vote means the city will acquire Pontem Cemetery Management Software to help map and inventory the sprawling property at 714 W. Broadway St. Currently, the Riverside Cemetery sales and record keeping relies on an antiquated in-house system, Director of Parks and Public Space Phil Biscorner told the commission.

“Luckily, we’ve had one staff member who has been in charge of our cemetery operations for the past 20 years,” he said. “But we’re moving into, basically, he could retire at any time. We’re trying to set up something before that happens.”

Under the existing system, people interested in purchasing a burial plat go through a multi-step process that involves the Nelson Park Shop & Riverside Cemetery Office, the city clerk’s office and the hope that the space in question proves available.

The new Graphic Information Systems-powered technology is expected save staffing and consumer time by allowing visitors to virtually tour the space and make an informed decision.

“This solution will let anybody … at home sit back and do a search of our cemetery,” Biscorner said. “It will bring us into the new age, technology-wise, and it makes sense to do all this.”

In addition to the $36,600 purchase price, the technology come with a $4,700 annual subscription fee. Biscorner said that is a cost savings from other models.

“Just with the phone calls and different people stopping in, it makes it a lot better,” he said. “It allows our staff to get back to operations.”

MPPD vehicles

Also Monday, the commission revved up the Mount Pleasant Police Department by giving its blessing to the purchase of two, new BMW motorcycles. The department currently has six officers who are motorcycle certified, Director of Public Safety Paul Lauria said.

Since 1997, the city has leased two new Harley-Davidsons annually, at a per-bike cost of about $3,750, including equipment such as lights, radios and decals. The leasing program was discontinued, Lauria said, opening the door for the department to own its own.

The newly approved BMW RT1250 Police Motorcycles are budgeted to cost $31,189 each and projected to last between 10 and 15 years. They are the same models that the Michigan State Police ride, Lauria said, and – absent transporting suspects from an arrest point – can serve the same functions as a squad car, if not more.

“They’re very useful in road patrol enforcement,” Lauria said.

He said police motorcycles are able to access off-road paths where squad cars don’t fit, give officers unique vantage points to enforce laws such as last year’s prohibition on distracted-driving and are useful in community-policing situations where face-to-face interactions are critical.

Funding for the bikes would come from departmental savings related to vacant positions and would not affect the general fund budget, according to city documentation. The board voted, 6-1, to support the purchase, with Commissioner Boomer Wingard casting the lone “no” vote.

Lauria said motorcycle officers log about 5,000 miles per year patrolling the city, in a season that stretches from roughly May through late October or early November.

“This just gives us another avenue to deliver our services and give some relief to the patrol vehicle fleet, as well,” Lauria said.

To that end, the department recently discovered one of its unmarked fleet vehicles is in dire need of replacement. The 2011 Ford Taurus, Lauria said, has been so impacted by rust and body damage that it has been declared unsafe and removed from service.

It was among the unmarked police vehicles that the department’s two detectives use in their day-to-day work, Lauria said.

“We do weekly trips to Grand Rapids, Grayling, Saginaw for lab,” he said. “We have our pill-drop program where we have to go to Grand Rapids and incinerate; they’re in charge of all of that.

“We have evidence that the detectives carry for testing all of the state … and that doesn’t even include the investigations.”

While the department didn’t have a replacement vehicle ready to purchase, it was asking the commission’s OK to earmark the funds. The members unanimously agreed.

The 2024 budget allocated the $40,000 to replace recording equipment in the department interview room, but a grant covered the costs and essentially freed those dollars up. Lauria said the pre-emptive request was designed to make sure the money could be used when the right car comes along.

“We just have to have a fairly quick turnaround, once the vehicle is found,” he said.