College Station city council members are told that state law does not allow pet ashes in city cemetery columbariums.
The update during the council’s June 26th meeting came two weeks after a woman asked the council to reinterpret the city ordinance.
On June 12th, Lisa Burton wanted to place in her mother’s columbarium, the ashes of her late mother’s cat.
City attorney Adam Falco said state law restricts municipal cemeteries to human remains.
Mayor John Nichols turned down councilman David White’s request to revisit the request, citing the city attorney’s opinion.
Nichols also said he hoped city staff will work with Burton “to encourage her to find an appropriate way to honor her mother. And I think that will be possible.”
The mayor also said staff had contacted Burton with the legal opinion. Burton told WTAW News her only contact with city staff was the day after she made the request. Burton said she learned of the legal opinion last Friday (June 27) when she contacted councilman White.
Click below to hear comments from the June 26, 2025 College Station city council meeting.
Original story, June 16, 2025:
The lone speaker during the public comment portion of last Thursday’s College Station city council meeting (June 12) asked that the city cemetery ordinance be re-interpreted.
Lisa Burton wants to place in her mother’s columbarium, the ashes of her late mother’s cat.
Burton says while the city ordinance says “cemeteries are set apart for the interment of human remains”, she says the ordinance can be interpreted to say columbariums are not restricted to only the internment of human remains…that the phrase “set apart” does not mean “restricted to”.
Burton said friends told her to add the cat’s ashes without notifying city officials, but Burton said “that’s not the way I believe things should be done.”
She also told the council that “the city can not make me a promise beyond 100 percent that there are not animal/pet ashes already with their owners in any of the cemeteries here.”
Five and a half hours after Burton’s comments, just before the council ended its public business at midnight, councilman David White asked for more information about the city cemetery ordinance with the possibility of discussing this at a future workshop.
Click below to hear comments from the June 12, 2025 College Station city council meeting.
