[Adopted 12-18-1984 by Ord. No. 84-23 as Ch.
20 of the 1984 Code; amended in its entirety 10-22-1996 by Ord. No. 96-14]
The intent of this article is to recognize the
right of the public to the use and enjoyment of property which is
in public ownership. It is further the intent to protect public property
and to ensure that it is not used for private gain, without proper
safeguards and fair compensation to the public.
The following activities shall be unlawful,
except with the prior written consent of the City Commission:
A.
To use public property in connection with any business,
including the use of public property as a location for the sale of
any product.
B.
To use public property in such a manner as to monopolize
and exclude other members of the public from equal and similar enjoyment
of the facilities. This shall not include such activities as making
use of picnic areas in city parks on a first-come basis.
C.
To construct or install anything within, on, under or above public property. This shall include but not be limited to the placement of any structures, fencing, pavement, signs, pipes, wires, poles and antennas. Driveways which are part of approved site plans shall not require City Commission approval, but shall be subject to the provisions of Article IV of this chapter.
The applicant shall furnish the Department of
Community Improvement with the following information regarding its
request to use public property. The review fee for such application
shall be as established by resolution.
A.
The amount and location of public property necessary
for installation of its facilities. This shall include a description
of all property needed on a temporary basis for installation. This
shall also include the depth or height of the proposed facilities
as well as any requirements for separation from other facilities.
B.
All safety information, including safeguards proposed
during installation. This shall include all maintenance of traffic
plans and shall show in detail any proposed impacts to streets and
adjacent properties. All proposed open cuts of roadways shall be explained
in detail.
C.
The anticipated maintenance needs of the facilities,
including time frames.
D.
The anticipated impact on other existing users of
the rights-of-way, including any necessary relocation requests.
E.
The number of properties within the city which will
be eligible to receive service from the facilities.
A.
Applications to engage in any activity listed in § 176-10 shall be filed with the Department of Community Improvement. Within 30 days of receipt of a complete application, the Department of Community Improvement, in cooperation with the Department of Public Works, shall review the application and issue a staff report. Upon issuance of the staff report, the City Clerk will schedule a public hearing on the matter before the City Commission, at its next available regular meeting. Impacts to public rights-of-way differ greatly dependent upon what type of facilities are to be installed, therefore the following factors shall be considered by the City Commission in determining whether or not to approve the application and in establishing conditions for approval and setting the fee to be paid.
(1)
Will the use proposed benefit the residents and property
owners of the city?
(2)
What impact will the facilities have on the public
in terms of inconvenience during installation and maintenance and
what is proposed in terms of mitigation for the inconvenience? For
purpose of this section, inconvenience includes increased travel time,
loss of access and trade to local businesses, increased noise pollution
and visual intrusion.
(3)
What is the reasonable rental value of the property
proposed to be used? In establishing a rental value, the overall length
of time the applicant is seeking to have use of the property must
be considered.
(4)
What impact will the proposed facilities have on the
city's management and maintenance of public property? In calculating
the financial impact on streets, each proposed street cut will be
presumed to create an impact equal to 10% of the cost of resurfacing
a one-eighth-mile section of the impacted roadway.
(5)
What are the appropriate safeguards to minimize potential
public safety hazards to the public and other users of the public
rights-of-way?
B.
In order to approve an application, the Commission
shall find that the service or product to be provided will benefit
residents of the city and that the compensation the public will receive
for use of the property is fair and reasonable. Orders approving applications
for use of public property shall contain conditions of approval which
include the term of the lease and rental fees. All successful applicants
will be required to sign a lease for the use of the public property.
Users who are required to obtain a franchise agreement will have the
terms of this approval incorporated into the franchise agreement.
In the event that a reasonable rental value is more than the city
is permitted to charge by law, the maximum amount permitted will be
charged with the provision that if the cap is increased or removed,
the fee will be adjusted to the current reasonable rental value.
