[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees of the Village
of Wild Rose. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter grants to Charter Communications, its successors, and
assigns a nonexclusive franchise to install, maintain, and operate
a cable television system for the distribution of television signals,
frequency-modulated radio signals, and closed-circuit television programs
for the term stipulated in the franchise agreement, providing conditions,
limitations and requirements; stipulating protective and indemnity
provisions; providing for certain payments to the Village; providing
for charges and rates; providing for acceptance by the grantee; imposing
duties on the grantee at the expiration of its franchise, prohibiting
assignments, subleases and encumbrances; and providing for extension
of franchise to newly annexed territories.
In accepting this franchise, the grantee acknowledges that its
rights hereunder are subject to the police power of the Village of
Wild Rose to adopt and enforce general and specific ordinances necessary
to the health, safety and welfare of the public, and the grantee agrees
to comply with all applicable general and specific laws enacted by
the Village of Wild Rose pursuant to such power.
The following words and phrases, whenever used in this chapter,
shall be construed as defined in this section unless from the context
a different meaning is intended or unless a different meaning is specifically
defined and more particularly directed to the use of such word or
phrase:
Are revenues from all services provided the subscriber, including
pay cable, but excluding installation costs.
A system of antennas and other receiving equipment, cables,
wires, lines, towers, wave guides, laser beams or any other conductors,
converters, equipment or facilities designed or constructed for the
purpose of producing, receiving, amplifying and distributing by audio,
video and other forms of electronic or electrical signals to and/or
from locations in and outside the Village.
Charter Communications, which shall be considered a public
utility for purposes of this chapter.
Is a purchaser of any service delivered by the grantee pursuant
to this franchise, and "subscriber" shall also include all persons
who are not required to pay any fee, but receive any service delivered
by grantee pursuant to this franchise.
Is any person using such service whether such person pays
the grantee or is allowed to utilize such service by subscriber.
Is a duly elected Village Board of the Village of Wild Rose.
In order to provide for a maximum degree of flexibility in this
franchise, which covers a field that is relatively new and rapidly
changing, and which probably will see many regulatory, technical,
financial, marketing and legal changes during the term of this franchise,
and to help achieve a continued advanced and modern system for the
Village, the following terms and conditions are part of any franchise
hereby granted pursuant to this chapter:
A.
At the option of the Village, approximately five years and 10 years
prior to the expiration of this franchise, during the month of February
at a regular or special Village Board meeting, the Village and the
grantee shall, at the Village's option, meet to discuss application
of new technologies, system performances, services provided, programming
offered, customer complaints, privacy, human rights, amendments to
this chapter, undergrounding progress, and judicial and FCC rulings.
The parties may renegotiate any of the above provisions at that time.
B.
Board members, administrative personnel, the public, or the grantee may add further topics to the list recited in Subsection A above.
A.
The Village Board may cancel a franchise granted by this chapter,
or provide for its termination at a date prior to its expiration date,
at any time upon a finding, made after 30 days' notice of proposed
cancellation or reduction in duration, and a public hearing that the
grantee has failed to cure one or more of the following defects during
a sixty-day period following issuance of a written notice by the Clerk-Treasurer
to the grantee of such defect:
(1)
Material breach, whether by act or omission, of any term or condition
of this chapter; or
(2)
Insolvency of the grantee, or inability or unwillingness of the grantee
to pay its just debts when they accrue, or application by the grantee
for adjudication as a bankrupt, or the filing of a voluntary assignment
for the benefit of creditor, or if a judgment, tax warrant or tax
lien remains unsatisfied for a period of six months.
B.
In the event any of the above-mentioned defects are caused by equipment
failure or the grantee's inability to obtain certain equipment for
reasons beyond the grantee's control, then the grantee shall be allowed
an additional 60 days beyond the date of receiving the necessary equipment
before there is deemed a grounds for termination.
C.
Termination of forfeiture of this franchise shall in no way affect
the right of the Village under the franchise or any provision of law.
D.
In the period between expiration or cancellation of the franchise
and the transfer of the cable system as provided in this chapter,
the grantee shall continue to provide service to the public as if
its franchise were still in effect, but in the capacity of a trustee
for its successor in interest.
No transfer of effective ownership or control of the cable system
may take place, whether by forced or voluntary sale, lease, mortgage,
assignment, encumbrance or any other form of disposition, without
prior notice to and approval by the Village Board. The Village Board's
refusal to approve must be related to the grantee's future service
and performance, otherwise approval shall not be unreasonably withheld.
The grantee's notice to the Village Board shall include the full identifying
particulars of the proposed transaction. For purposes of this section,
a "transfer of effective ownership or control" shall be taken to mean
and include the acquisition, within any consecutive period of 36 months
or more than 30% interest in the grantee's voting stock, franchise,
plant, equipment or other property used in the conduct of the business,
or more than a 30% representation on the grantee's Board of Directors,
by any person or group of persons acting in concert who before that
time did not enjoy such interest or representation. Such definition
shall not include the disposition of facilities or equipment no longer
required in the conduct of the business, nor shall it include a pledge
or mortgage or similar instrument which transfers conditional ownership
of all or part of the system's assets to a lender or creditor in the
ordinary course of business so long as the lender or creditor does
not thereby acquire the right to control and direct the system's operations.
The franchise is for the present territorial limits of the Village,
and for any area henceforth added thereto during the term of this
franchise.
A.
No monitoring of any terminal connected to the system shall take
place without specific written authorization by the user of the terminal
in question on each occasion and without written notice to the Village.
B.
The grantee shall not, except as required by governmental action,
provide any data concerning specific subscribers or users or their
use of its services without first securing written authorization for
the provision of such data.
C.
The subscriber or user shall retain the right to deactivate his/her
terminal, but shall continue to be responsible for charges until the
grantee is notified to terminate service.
A.
The grantee's operations shall conform to the technical standards
set by the federal government. The grantee shall maintain on file,
consistent with the rules of the federal government, all testing results
which shall be open to inspection by the Village Board. The grantee
shall, upon request, inform the Village of any audit by an employee
of the federal government together with the name(s) of the employee(s)
who conduct such audit. The grantee shall perform all tests required
by the federal government which are now in effect or which may be
required in the future.
B.
The grantee shall keep a record of complaints received and shall
make available to the Village, upon request, compilation of such complaints
showing when received and the general nature of the complaint. Individual
names will not be used, but it shall be possible to ascertain the
action taken to satisfy the complainant.
C.
The grantee shall maintain an office which shall be open during all
business hours, have a locally listed telephone number, and be so
operated that complaints and requests for repairs or adjustments may
be received on a twenty-four-hour basis. The grantee shall maintain
a repair and maintenance crew capable of responding to subscriber
complaints or requests for service within 24 hours of receipt of the
complaint or request. No charge shall be made to the subscriber for
this service.
The grantee shall, as part of the acceptance of this franchise,
provide a complete description of the cable system in the Village.
Such description shall be updated as additions or changes are made.
A.
Rates for basic subscriber service shall be subject to the regulation
and approval of the Village Board.
B.
The grantee shall be allowed to charge a nominal fee for each service
installation. It is understood that the grantee may, from time to
time, waive the installation charge for purposes of marketing. The
grantee may charge additional installation fees, plus monthly charges,
for additional outlets that the customer requests.
C.
The grantee is hereby given authority and approval to, from time
to time, discount the basic subscriber charge; provided, however,
there is valid economic reason, such as a prepayment or guarantee
of subscribers, but provided further that said discount does not in
any way discriminate against or favor any one class of subscribers
in the Village.
D.
All of the rates and charges shall be at the discretion of the grantee,
including commercial rates, multiple-dwelling rates and pay programming
rates, including per program. The grantee shall file with the Village
a list of all such rates, and said rates shall not be effective until
30 days after the filing of said rates.
E.
The Village Board shall act on all rate-change requests by the grantee,
including rates for installation, within 30 days of the receipt of
the written request by the grantee. Rate-change requests shall be
directed to the Clerk-Treasurer. The grantee shall provide whatever
financial information is requested by the Village in support of its
application. In the event that the Village does not act upon the rate
request, it shall be deemed approved 30 days after the first meeting
of the Village Board subsequent to the receipt of the written request
being filed by the grantee with the Clerk-Treasurer.
The grantee, upon acceptance of this franchise, is hereby granted
the rights to erect, maintain and operate in the streets, alleys and
utility easements of the Village and other public places a cable system.
The poles used for such distribution shall be those erected or used
by the local utilities. The grantee may erect its own poles if the
Village's permission is first obtained.
A.
Installation.
(1)
All installations made by the grantee shall be made in good, substantial,
safe condition and maintained in such condition at all times. The
grantee shall make no excavations in the streets, alleys and public
places without first procuring a written permit from the Village Engineer
or other authorized representative of the Village, and all work of
such kind shall be done under the supervision of the Village authorities
and so as to meet the approval of the Village Engineer.
(2)
The grantee's transmission and distribution system poles, wires and
appurtenances shall be located, erected and maintained so as not to
interfere with the lives or safety of persons or to interfere with
new improvements the Village may deem proper to make or to unnecessarily
hinder or obstruct the free use of the streets, alleys, bridges or
other public property. Removal of poles to avoid such interference
will be at the grantee's expense.
(3)
All land shall be substantially restored to the condition which existed
prior to the beginning of construction and/or excavation.
(4)
The grantee shall utilize the easements of other public utilities
when possible and shall obtain the written permission of the utility
for said use and the landowner's consent if required by said utility
easement.
(5)
All easements required from subscribers or nonsubscribers shall be
on a standard form supplied by the grantee and approved by the Village
Board or Village Attorney.
B.
Commencement and completion of construction.
(1)
Within 30 days of the date of the award of this franchise, the grantee
must undertake the necessary steps to secure authorization to operate
from the appropriate governmental agencies regulating cable service.
If authorization to operate is not received within 12 months of the
date of franchise, the franchise may be cancelled at the option of
the Village.
(2)
Service shall be afforded to the degree of at least 75% of the proposed
system no later than 12 months following the appropriate governmental
agency's grant of authorization. If this state of completion is not
met, the Village Board may cancel the franchise.
The grantee shall have the authority to trim trees upon and
overhanging streets, alleys, sidewalks and other public places of
the Village so as to prevent the branches of such trees from coming
in contact with the wires and cables of the grantee. The grantee may
contract for such services.
A.
Indemnification. The grantee shall defend and save the Village and
its agents and employees harmless from all claims, damages, losses
and expenses, including attorneys' fees, sustained by the Village
on account of any suit, judgment, execution, claim or demand whatsoever
arising out of the following:
(1)
The enactment of this chapter and the award of a permit there under,
except as may arise from the process or action of selection of a grantee
for award of a permit as provided herein.
(2)
The installation, operation or maintenance of the cable TV network
except for acts of the Village, its agents or employees unless said
acts are the request of and under the direction or supervision of
grantee.
B.
Liability insurance. All grantees shall maintain a general comprehensive
liability insurance policy throughout the term of the permit, naming,
as the additional insured, the Village, its officers, boards, commissions,
agents and employees, with a company approved by the Village Board
and in a form satisfactory to the Village Attorney, protecting the
Village and its agents and employees against liability for loss or
damages for personal injury, death or property damage, occasioned
by the operations of the grantee under any franchise granted hereunder,
in the amounts of $500,000 for bodily injury or death to any one person
with the limit, however, of $1,000,000 for bodily injury or death
resulting from any one accident and $500,000 for property damage resulting
from any one accident.
The grantee shall pay to the Village annually in January an
amount equal to 3% of the grantee's revenues from basic subscriber
cable services. Annually, an independent auditor shall certify the
amount of the grantee's revenues from basic subscriber cable services.
Annually, an independent auditor shall certify the amount of the grantee's
revenues from all cable services in order to verify the fee paid pursuant
hereto.
The grantee shall grant to the Village, free of expense, joint
use of any and all poles owned by it for any proper municipal purposes,
insofar as it may be done without interfering with the free use and
enjoyment of the grantee's own wires and fixtures, and the Village
shall hold the grantee harmless from any and all actions, causes of
action or damage caused by the placing of the Village's wires or appurtenances
upon the poles of the grantee. Proper regard shall be given to all
existing safety rules governing construction and maintenance in effect
at the time of construction.
A.
During the term of this franchise, the grantee shall provide free
service to any and all schools whether private, public or parochial,
all churches and to the fire stations within the area of this franchise.
The grantee may charge for usual installation costs.
B.
The grantee shall provide at least one dedicated, noncommercial public
access channel and associated production equipment to be made available
to the public at all times on a nondiscriminatory basis.
C.
The grantee shall not be responsible for the production costs.
A.
Unauthorized connections prohibited. It shall be unlawful for any
firm, person, group, company, corporation or governmental body or
agency, without the expressed consent of the grantee, to make or possess
any connection, extension or division, whether physically, acoustically,
inductively, electronically or otherwise, with or to any segment of
a CATV system for any purpose whatsoever. However, this section shall
not be construed to apply to any signal receptions by unmodified television
sets.
B.
Removal or destruction prohibited. It shall be unlawful for any firm,
person, group, company, corporation or governmental body or agency
to willfully interfere, tamper, remove, obstruct or damage any part,
segment of content of a CATV system for any purpose whatsoever.
C.
Forfeiture. Any individual cited and found guilty of this section
is subject to forfeitures established by the Municipal Court, but
no more than $500 per occurrence. Each continuing day of the violation
shall be considered a separate occurrence.
Should any word, phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or portion
of this chapter and franchise be declared to be invalid by a court
of competent jurisdiction, such adjudication shall not affect the
validity of this chapter and franchise as a whole, but shall only
affect the portion thereof declared to be invalid, and the Village
Board hereby expressly states and declares that it would nonetheless
have passed this chapter and granted this franchise had it known that
any such word, phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or portion of said
franchise were invalid.
In the event this franchise terminates and neither the Village
nor anyone else purchases the grantee's cable system, the grantee
shall remove its cables, wires and appliances from the streets, alleys,
public ways and placed within the Village, except any underground
cables, appliances or other appurtenances.
The franchise shall take effect and be in force for 15 years
subject to its passage by the Village Board and the acceptance of
its terms, in writing, by the grantee or its assigns.
A.
Any matter expressly arbitral in this chapter shall be resolved in
favor of the party making the determination on such matter, unless
the other party demands arbitration within 30 days of receipt of written
notice of such determination. Such demand shall be made in writing
and mailed to the other party by certified mail, return receipt requested.
B.
In the event of arbitration, the parties shall select the arbitrator,
or if they fail to do so, the Circuit Judge for Waushara County shall
select the arbitrator. The expenses of the arbitration and compensation
of the arbitrator shall be borne by the Village and the grantee as
the award shall provide, but in no event shall the Village be obligated
to pay more than 1/2 such expenses and compensation. The arbitration
award shall be binding upon the parties.
This franchise shall be amended to incorporate all amendments
to the statutes, rules and regulations of the federal government as
they are promulgated by the federal government. Any provision herein
in conflict with or preempted by said rules and regulations or statutes
shall be superseded.
In addition to the procedures specified in § 5-1-5, the following shall be in effect:
A.
After notice and hearing, the Village may reduce any or all of the
subscriber rates if the grantee fails to provide the services specified
in this chapter or fails to comply with any applicable government
regulations, and may fine the grantee up to $500 per day for such
failure. The grantee is not responsible for failure to provide adequate
service caused by acts of God, strikes, governmental or military actions,
or other conditions beyond its control, including the lack of material
or parts.
The grantee shall at all times keep its cables and other appurtenances
used for transmitting signals shielded in such a manner that there
will be no interference with signals received by private receiver's
sets owned by persons not subscribing to the grantee's service.
