[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township Committee of the Township
of Washington as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
[Adopted 11-3-1966 by Ord. No. 37]
Permission and consent be and the same is hereby granted to
New Jersey Bell Telephone company, its successors and assigns, to
erect, construct, reconstruct, lay, maintain and operate its underground
conduits and subways, cables, wires, manholes, loading coil vaults,
loading coils, including the necessary street openings and lateral
connections to curb poles and property lines, and its other fixtures
and appurtenances, in, through, upon, along, under and across all
of the various streets, roads, avenue and highways and parts thereof,
throughout their entire length, in this Township for its local and
through lines and systems, in connection with the transaction of its
business, and all of the various streets, roads, avenues and highways
and parts thereof, throughout their entire length, in the Township,
are hereby designated and prescribed for the uses and purposes of
said company as aforementioned.
Said company may construct, reconstruct, lay, maintain and operate
in its subways or underground conduits, manholes and loading coil
vaults the wires, cables, loading coils and other electrical conductors
and appurtenances necessary in connection therewith, for its local
and through lines and systems. It may also erect, construct, reconstruct,
maintain and operate the necessary distributing poles or posts, fixtures
and supports, and distribute therefrom upon, along, across, over and
above the surface of said streets, roads, avenues and highways and
parts thereof such wires, cables and other electrical conductors which
it may find necessary to erect, construct, reconstruct, maintain and
operate in connection with the system of subways, underground conduits
and manholes aforementioned. With the exception of lateral branches
to curb poles and property lines, said underground conduits shall
be placed below the surface of said streets, roads, avenues and highways
and parts thereof, and said conduits generally shall not be constructed
more than 10 feet from the curbline, unless obstructions make it necessary
to deviate from such course, and all underground conduits shall be
placed at least 18 inches below the surface of the street.
A.Â
All manholes and loading coil vaults shall be located beneath the
surface of said streets, roads, avenues and highways and parts thereof
at such points along the line of the subways or underground conduits
as may be necessary or convenient for placing, maintaining and operating
the cables and other electrical conductors which said company may
from time to time place in said subways or underground conduits, and
shall be so constructed as to conform to the cross-sectional and longitudinal
grade of the pavement and so as not to interfere with the safety or
convenience of persons or vehicles traveling on or over such streets,
roads, avenues and highways and parts thereof.
B.Â
Before proceeding with the work of constructing underground conduits
and cables, manholes and/or loading coil vaults under the permission
and consent herein contained, said company shall file with the Mayor
and Committee of this Township a map or plan showing the location
and size of any such proposed underground conduits, subways, manholes
and loading coil vaults, which map or plan shall be first approved
by said Mayor and Committee, or their authorized representative.
C.Â
Prior to the opening or excavating of any streets, roads, avenues
and highways and parts thereof for the purpose of laying, maintaining
and operating its underground systems after the approval of the map
and plan as aforementioned, said company shall first obtain a permit
for such opening or excavation upon payment of such reasonable fee
therefor as may be required by any ordinance regulating openings and
excavations of streets.
The surface of the streets, roads, avenues and highways and
any pavement or flagging taken up by said company in building its
lines shall be restored to as good condition as it was before the
commencement of work thereon. No highways shall be encumbered for
a longer period than shall be necessary to execute the work. Such
restoration shall be subject to the approval of the Township after
an inspection by its authorized representative upon completion of
the work and the payment of a reasonable fee therefor.
Except as herein expressly provided for, said company shall
be exempt from any fee which may be required by any ordinance regulating
the openings and excavations of streets within the said Township.
Nothing herein contained shall be construed to impose any obligation
on the part of this Township to open any streets, roads, avenues or
highways or parts thereof not heretofore dedicated or opened to the
public use, and nothing herein contained shall be construed in any
court or place as an acceptance of any unaccepted street, road, avenue
or highway or any part thereof.
Said telephone company shall provide free of charge to this
Township, as long as this ordinance continues in effect, space in
its main subways (not exceeding one clear duct of standard size) to
accommodate the wires or electrical conductors required for signal
control in connection with its police patrol, fire alarm, telegraph
signal systems and traffic signal control systems, but not to include
circuits for the supply of electrical energy for the traffic or other
signals; provided, however, that such wires or electrical conductors
shall not be installed, used or maintained in such manner as to interfere
with the wires or electrical conductors which said company, its successors
and assigns may then have or may thereafter from time to time place
in its main subways, and said Township shall indemnity and save harmless
said telephone company from all claims or suits for damages arising
from the location in its main subways of any such wires or electrical
conductors used by this Township. Before proceeding with the placing
of its said electrical conductors in the main subways or manholes
of said company, either on the part of itself or on the part of a
person, firm or corporations engaged to perform such work, this Township
shall give to the said company 30 days' notice in writing in order
that the work may be performed under the supervision of said company.
If any or all of the said streets or highways be later taken over
by the Board of Chosen Freeholders of the County of Burlington or
the New Jersey State Highway Department, then such Board of Chosen
Freeholders or the State Highway Department may use the same clear
duct of standard size referred to for their respective police patrol,
fire alarm, telegraph and traffic signal control systems in conjunction
with the Township's use thereof for similar purposes, but only after
making such satisfactory arrangements as may be necessary with the
Township and the telephone company for the full protection of each
other's interests.
The permission and consent given and granted by this ordinance shall continue and be in force for a period of 50 years from the date of the final passage thereof, provided that its provisions are accepted by the company as hereinafter provided to § A500-13, and throughout the full time of this ordinance, said company, its successors and assigns shall furnish safe, adequate and proper service within this Township and keep and maintain its property and equipment in such conditions as to enable it to do so.
Nothing herein contained shall be construed to grant unto said
New Jersey Bell Telephone company, its successors and assigns an exclusive
right or to prevent the granting of permission and consent to other
companies for like purposes on any of the streets, roads, avenues
or highways of this Township.
The term "Township" as used in this ordinance in its application
to the Township of Washington, shall be held to apply to and include
any form of municipality or government into which this Township or
any part thereof may at any time hereafter be changed, annexed or
merged, and the term "Township Committee" or any other term herein
used in referring to the governing body of this Township shall be
held to apply to and include the governing body of such other form
of municipality.
The permission and consent hereby granted shall apply to and
cover the wires, cables, underground conduits and subways, manholes,
loading coil vaults, loading coils, fixtures and appurtenances heretofore
erected, constructed, reconstructed, maintained and operated by New
Jersey Bell Telephone company or its predecessors.
Said company shall pay the expenses incurred for advertising
done in connection with the passage of this ordinance within 30 days
after the date of its going into effect.
Said company shall file with the Township Clerk of this Township
its written acceptance of this ordinance within 30 days after the
date of receipt by it from the Township Clerk of notice of passage,
approval, and publication thereof, as provided by law, and said ordinance
shall, upon filing of such acceptance, become effective.
[Adopted 7-11-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-03[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance superseded former Art. II, Cable
Television Franchise, adopted 12-8-2009 by Ord. No. 2009-3.
The Township hereby grants to Comcast of South Jersey, LLC,
renewal of its nonexclusive municipal consent to place in, upon, across,
above, over and under highways, streets, alleys, sidewalks, easements,
public ways and public places in the municipality, poles, wires, cables,
underground conduits, manholes and other television conductors, fixtures,
apparatus and equipment as may be necessary for the construction,
operation and maintenance in the municipality of a cable television
and communications system.
For the purpose of this ordinance, the following terms, phrases,
words and their derivations shall have the meaning given herein. Such
meaning or definition of terms is supplemental to those definitions
of the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC") rules and regulations,
47 CFR Subsection 76.1 et seq., and the Cable Communications Policy
Act, 47 U.S.C. § 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 the federal and 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 Comcast of South Jersey, LLC's application for renewal
of municipal consent.
Any service tier, which includes the retransmission of local
television broadcast signals as defined by the FCC.
The Board of Public Utilities, State of New Jersey.
The grantee of rights under this ordinance and is known as
"Comcast of South Jersey, LLC."
The Federal Communications Commission.
The Office of Cable Television of the Board.
Consists of the area of the municipality currently served
with existing plant as set forth in the map annexed to the company's
application for municipal consent.
The Township of Washington, County of Burlington, State of
New Jersey.
A public hearing conducted by the municipality, concerning the
renewal of municipal consent herein granted to the company was held
after proper public notice 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 qualifications
of the company to receive this consent, the Township hereby finds
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.
A.Â
The nonexclusive municipal consent granted herein shall expire 10
years from the date of the expiration of the previous certification
of approval as issued by the Board of Public Utilities.
B.Â
In the event that the municipality shall find that the company has
not substantially complied with the material terms and conditions
of this ordinance, the municipality shall have the right to petition
the OCTV, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 48:5A-47, for appropriate action, including
modification and/or termination of the certificate of approval; provided,
however, that the municipality shall first have given the company
written notice of all alleged instances of noncompliance and an opportunity
to cure same within 90 days of that notification.
Pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Act, and, except
as where higher payment is otherwise required by the applicable law
and regulations (including N.J.S.A. 48:5A-30), the company shall,
during each year of operation under the consent granted herein, pay
to the Township 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 Township or any higher amount
permitted by the Act or otherwise allowable by law, whichever is greater.
The consent granted under this ordinance to the renewal of the
franchise shall apply to the entirety of the Township and any property
subsequently annexed hereto.
The company shall be required to proffer service to any residence
or business along any public right-of-way in the primary service area,
as set forth in the company's application. Any extension of plant
beyond the primary service area shall be governed by the company's
line extension policy, as set forth in the company's application,
with a homes-per-mile ("HPM") of 25 dwellings per linear mile from
the nearest active trunk or feeder line.
A.Â
Restoration. In the event that the company or its agents shall disturb
any pavement, street surfaces, sidewalks, driveways, or other surface
in the natural topography, the company shall, at its sole expense,
restore and replace such places or things so disturbed in as good
a condition as existed prior to the commencement of said work.
B.Â
Relocation. If at any time during the period of this consent, the
Township shall alter or change the grade of any street, alley or other
way or place the company, upon reasonable notice by the Township,
shall remove, re-lay or relocate its equipment, at the expense of
the company.
C.Â
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 or other
public places of the municipality so as to prevent the branches of
such tree from coming in contact with the wires and cable of the company.
Such trimming shall be only to the extent necessary to maintain proper
clearance of the company's wire and cables.
In providing services to its customers, the company shall comply
with N.J.A.C. 14:18-1.1 et seq. and all applicable state and federal
statutes and regulations. The company shall strive to meet or exceed
all voluntary company and industry standards in the delivery of customer
service and shall be prepared to report on it to the Township upon
written request of the municipality Administrator or Clerk.
A.Â
The company shall continue to comply fully with all applicable state
and federal statutes and regulations regarding credit for outages,
the reporting of same to regulatory agencies and notification of same
to customers.
B.Â
The company shall continue to fully comply with all applicable state
and federal statutes and regulations regarding the availability of
devices for the hearing impaired and the notification of same to customers.
C.Â
The company shall use every reasonable effort to meet or exceed voluntary
standards for telephone accessibility developed by the National Cable
Television Association (NCTA).
D.Â
Nothing herein shall impair the right of any subscriber or the Township
to express any comment with respect to telephone accessibility to
the Complaint Officer, or impair the right of the Complaint Officer
to take any action that is permitted under law.
A.Â
The Office of Cable Television is hereby designated as the Complaint
Officer for the municipality, pursuant to N.J.S.A. 48:5A-26(b).
B.Â
All complaints shall be received and processed in accordance with
N.J.A.C. 14:17-6.5. The Township shall have the right to request copies
of records and reports pertaining to complaints by Township customers
from the OCTV.
During the term of this franchise, and any renewal thereof,
the company shall maintain a business office or agent in accordance
with N.J.A.C. 14:18-5.1 for the purposes of receiving, investigating,
and resolving all complaints regarding the quality of service, equipment
malfunctions, and similar matters. Such local business office shall
have a publicly listed toll-free telephone number and be open during
normal business hours.
During the life of the franchise the company shall give to the
Township a bond 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 for municipal consent incorporated herein.
The rates of the company shall be subject to regulation as permitted
by federal and state law.
A.Â
The company shall provide standard installation and basic cable television
service on one outlet at no cost to each school in the municipality,
public and private, elementary, intermediate and secondary, provided
the school is within 200 feet of active cable distribution plant.
Each additional outlet installed, if any, shall be paid for on a materials-plus-labor
basis by the school requesting service. Monthly service charges shall
be waived on all additional outlets.
B.Â
The company shall provide standard installation and basic cable television
service on one outlet to each emergency medical service, police, fire,
emergency management facility and public library in the municipality,
provided the facility is located within 200 feet of active cable distribution
plant at no charge. Each additional outlet installed, if any, shall
be paid for on a materials-plus-labor basis by the municipality; monthly
service charges shall be waived on all additional outlets.
C.Â
The company shall provide free basic internet service, via high-speed
cable modem, to one nonnetworked personal computer in each qualified
existing and future public school in the Township, elementary, intermediate
and secondary at no charge, provided the facility is located within
200 feet of active cable distribution plant. The internet service
shall be installed on a personal computer that is accessible to the
students and not for administrative use only.
D.Â
The company shall provide free basic internet access via high-speed
cable modem on one nonnetworked personal computer in each qualified
existing and future public library at no charge, provided the facility
is located within 200 feet of active cable distribution plant. The
internet service shall be installed on a personal computer that is
accessible to library patrons and not for administrative use only.
A.Â
The company shall be required to have the capability to override
the audio portion of the system in order to permit the broadcasting
of emergency messages by the municipality pursuant to state and federal
statutes and regulations.
B.Â
The company shall in no way be held liable for any injury suffered
by the municipality or any other person, during an emergency, if for
any reason the municipality is unable to make full use of the cable
television system as contemplated herein. The municipality shall utilize
the state-approved procedures for such emergency uses.
The company shall at all times maintain a comprehensive general
liability insurance policy, naming the municipality as an insured,
with a single limit amount of $1,000,000 covering liability for any
death, personal injury, property damages or other liability arising
out of its construction and operation of the cable television system,
and an excess liability (or "umbrella") policy in the amount of $5,000,000.
All of the statements and commitments contained in the application
and any amendment thereto submitted, in writing, to the municipality
by the company, except as modified therein, 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 provided same do not conflict
with state or federal law.
Should the Township grant municipal consent for a franchise
to construct, operate and maintain a cable television system to any
other person, corporation or entity on terms materially less burdensome
or more favorable than the terms contained herein, the company may
substitute such language that is more favorable or less burdensome
for the comparable provision of this ordinance subject to the provisions
of N.J.A.C. 14:17-6.7.
If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, phrase or portion
of this ordinance is for any reason held invalid or unconstitutional
by any court of 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.
Nothing in this franchise or in any prior agreement is or was
intended to confer third-party beneficiary status on any member of
the public to enforce the terms of such agreements or franchise.
A.Â
The company shall not be required to disclose information which it
reasonably deems to be proprietary or confidential in nature. The
Township agrees to treat any information disclosed by the company
as confidential and only to disclose it to those employees, representatives,
and agents of the Township that have a need to know in order to enforce
this ordinance agreement and who agree to maintain the confidentiality
of all such information.
B.Â
The company shall not be required to provide customer information
in violation of Section 631 of the Cable Act or any other applicable
federal or state privacy law. For purposes of this section, the terms
"proprietary or confidential" include, but are not limited to, information
relating to the cable system design, customer lists, marketing plans,
financial information unrelated to the calculation of franchise fees
or rates pursuant to FCC rules, or other information that is reasonably
determined by the company to be competitively sensitive. The company
may make proprietary or confidential information available for inspection
but not copying or removal by the municipality's representative.
In the event that the municipality has in its possession and receives
a request under a state "sunshine," public records, or similar law
for the disclosure of information the company has designated as confidential,
trade secret or proprietary, the Township shall notify the company
of such request and cooperate with company in opposing such request.
The company shall not be liable or responsible for, in whole
or in part, any delay or failure to perform any of its obligations
hereunder which may result from accidents, pandemics, floods, fires,
earthquakes, tornadoes or other acts of God; war, acts of war (whether
or not a declaration of war is made), civil disobedience; civil disturbance,
sabotage or vandalism, customer tampering or interference, or act
of public enemy; strikes, other labor or job actions or unavailability
of materials or equipment; or other events or circumstances beyond
the reasonable control of the company.
The municipality, for its part, shall endeavor to exercise reasonable
efforts to require developers and utility companies to provide the
company with at least 15 days advance notice of an available open
trench for the placement of necessary cable.
This ordinance shall take effect immediately upon issuance of
a renewal certificate of approval from the BPU.
