[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee of the Township
of Andover 11-8-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-12.[1]Amendments noted where applicable.]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also superseded former
Ch. A234, adopted 4-1-2002 by Ord. No. 2002-5.
The Municipality hereby grants to the company its nonexclusive
consent to place in, upon, along, across, above, over and under the
highway, streets, alleys, sidewalks, public ways, and public places
in the Municipality, poles, wires, cables, and fixtures necessary
for the maintenance and operation in the Municipality of a cable television
system and cable communications system. Construction, pursuant to
said consent, is conditioned upon prior approval of the Board of Public
Utilities.
For the purposes of this ordinance, the following terms, phrases,
words and their derivations shall have the meanings given herein.
Such meaning or definition of terms is supplemental to those definitions
given by the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC") Rules and Regulations,
47 C.F.R. Subsection 76.1 et seq., and the Cable Communications Policy
Act, 47 U.S.C. Section 521 et seq., as amended, and the Cable Television
Act, N.J.S.A. 48:5A-1 et seq., and shall in no way be construed to
broaden, alter or conflict with federal or state definitions:
Chapter 186 of the General Laws of New Jersey, and subsequent
amendments thereto, N.J.S.A. 48:5A-1 et seq.
The grantee of rights under this ordinance and known as Service
Electric Cable TV of New Jersey, Inc.
The Township of Andover, County of Sussex, State of New Jersey.
A public hearing concerning the consent herein granted to the
company was held, after proper public notice, on December 14, 2009,
pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Act. Said hearing, having
been held and fully open to the public, and the Municipality having
received all comments regarding the qualifications of the company
to receive this consent, the Municipality hereby finds that the company
possesses the necessary legal, technical, character, financial, and
other qualifications, and that the company's operating and construction
arrangements are adequate and feasible.
The Township hereby grants to the company a nonexclusive consent
to the issuance of a franchise by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities
to construct, erect, operate, modify and maintain, in, upon, along,
across, above, over, and under the highways, streets, alleys, sidewalks,
public ways and public places now laid out or dedicated and all extensions
thereof and additions thereto, in the Township of Andover, such poles,
wires, cables, underground conduits, manholes, and other television
conductors and fixtures necessary for the maintenance and operation
in the Township of a cable television system and cable communications
system for the purpose of distributing television and radio signals,
and other electronic impulses in order to furnish television and radio
programs, and various communications and other electronic services
to the public. The rights so granted include the right to use and
occupy said highways, streets, alleys, public ways and public places,
and all manner of easements for the purposes herein set forth and
as provided by federal and state law, and are subject to the terms
and conditions herein.
The consent herein granted shall expire 10 years from the date
of expiration of the previous certificate of approval as issued by
the Board of Public Utilities (BPU). The company further agrees to
extend service to the entire Township and to build out all uncabled
areas of the Township in accordance with the company's line extension
and nonstandard installation policies.
Pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Act, the company
shall, during each year of operation under the consent granted herein,
pay to the Municipality 2% of the gross revenues from all recurring
charges in the nature of subscription fees paid by subscribers to
its cable television reception service in the Municipality, or any
amount permitted by the Cable Television Act or otherwise allowable
by law.
Rates shall be set by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities
as required by law or as otherwise specified by federal or state law,
to the extent applicable.
A.
In the event the company breaches its responsibilities herein, the
Township reserves the right to seek redress administratively through
the Board of Public Utilities, or at law in a court of competent jurisdiction.
B.
The company will restore any property damaged by the installation
of its wires or facilities to its original condition at its own cost
and expense. In the event it fails to so restore said property upon
the receipt of 30 days' written notice by the Township to do so, the
Township may withdraw a portion of the performance bond posted with
the Township to compensate the owner for the restoration cost. In
the event said funds are withdrawn, the company shall restore the
balance of the $25,000 performance bond upon 30 days' written notice
by the Township to do so.
The consent granted herein to the company shall apply to the
entirety of the Municipality, and any property hereafter annexed.
The company shall be required to proffer service to any persons,
residents or business in conformance with its tariff on file with
the Office of Cable Television, including any policies for line extension
and/or nonstandard installations.
A.
Restoration. In the event that the company or its agents shall disturb
any pavement, streets, surfaces, sidewalks, driveways or other surfaces
in the natural topography, the company shall, at its sole expense,
restore and replace such places or things so disturbed to as good
a condition as existed prior to the commencement of said work.
B.
Relocation. If, at any time during the period of this consent, the
Municipality shall alter or change the grade of any street, alley
or other way or place, the company, upon reasonable notice by the
Municipality, shall remove, relay and relocate its equipment, at the
expense of the company.
C.
The company shall temporarily move or remove appropriate parts of
its facilities to allow for the moving of buildings and machinery,
or in other similar circumstances. The expense shall be borne by the
party requesting such action, except when required by the Municipality,
in which case the company shall bear the cost.
D.
Removal or trimming of trees. During the exercise of its rights and
privileges under this franchise, the company shall have the authority
to trim trees upon and overhanging streets, alleys, sidewalks and
public places of the Municipality, so as to prevent the branches of
such trees from coming in contact with the wires and cables of the
company. Such trimming shall be only to the extent necessary to maintain
proper clearance for the company's facilities.
During the term of this franchise, and any renewal thereof,
the company shall maintain a local business office in Sussex County
for the purpose of receiving, investigating and resolving all complaints
regarding the quality of service, equipment, malfunctions, and similar
matters. Such local business office shall be staffed from 8:00 a.m.
to 6:00 p.m. Monday through Friday for customer service inquiries,
from 8:00 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday for technical support,
and from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday.
During the life of the franchise, the company shall give a bond
to the Municipality, which bond shall be in the amount of $25,000.
Such bond shall be to insure the faithful performance of all undertakings
of the company as represented in its application and incorporated
herein.
The company shall provide public, educational, and governmental
(PEG) access channels and facilities in accordance with its application
for renewal of municipal consent.
A.
The company shall provide services in accordance with its tariff
for cable television service approved by the Board of Public Utilities
on January 1, 2010.
C.
Free cable television services shall also be provided to the Township
Senior Center, pending the issuance of all requisite permit approvals
and the necessary cable build-out of the location in question. The
Township understands that the company has agreed to a build-out of
the area and that free services shall be provided to the Township
Senior Center only upon the completion of all required construction.
D.
The company shall also provide the following additional services
to the Township:
(1)
Although the company does not donate/provide video equipment
nor allow its video equipment to be personally used by the Township,
the company shall, upon reasonable notice, videotape any such events
that the Township deems necessary, in return for a reasonable fee,
if any.
(2)
The company shall also allow the Township to utilize its public
access channel for any and all nonprofit public announcements and/or
messages. The Township is to provide the company with such announcements
and/or messages, and the company will, upon reasonable notice, post
the announcements and/or messages on the company's public access
channel.
Although nothing herein shall require the company to carry or
transmit any particular television stations or programming source,
the company shall provide the subscribers in the Township with at
least the same broad categories of programming, in approximately the
same quantity, as are now provided and which appear in the application
for municipal consent.
A.
The company agrees to maintain and keep in full force and effect,
at its sole expense, at all times during the term of this consent,
sufficient liability insurance naming the Municipality as an insured
and insuring against loss by any such claim, suit, judgment, execution
or demand, in the minimum amount of $1,000,000 combined single limit
for bodily injury or death to one person and $500,000 for property
damage resulting from any one accident.
B.
The contractor building the cable television lines shall file a worker's
compensation certificate of insurance with the Township Clerk prior
to commencing the work.
The company shall cause all construction plans relating to work
on any extensions of its plant, or work which could have significant
impact on public works within the Township, to be filed with the Township
Engineer's office.
The company shall not allow its cable or other operations to
interfere with television reception or persons not served by the company,
nor shall the system interfere with, obstruct or hinder in any manner,
the operation of the various utilities serving the residents of the
Township.
All of the commitments and statements contained in the application
and any amendment thereto submitted in writing to the Municipality
by the company, except as modified herein, are binding upon the company
as terms and conditions of this consent. The application and any other
relevant writings submitted by the company shall be annexed hereto
and made a part hereof by reference, as long as it does not conflict
with state or federal law.
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion
of this ordinance is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional
by any court, or federal or state agency of competent jurisdiction,
such portion shall be deemed a separate, distinct and independent
provision and such holding shall not affect the validity of the remaining
portions hereof.
Should any of the federal or state acts, regulations, or pronouncements applicable to the regulation of cable television service be modified in any way, such modification, to the extent it embodies required terms and conditions, and meaningfully can be incorporated into this ordinance, shall be so incorporated, consistent with any applicable effective dates specified in such modification. To the extent that any such modification(s) place(s) limits on permissible terms and conditions, and any provision of this ordinance becomes invalid by virtue of such modification(s), the preceding section, § A234-22, shall apply.
This ordinance shall take effect upon its final passage and
publication according to law.
