All franchises, licenses, contracts, and leases of which the
Village is a party when this Charter becomes effective shall remain
in full force and effect in accordance with their respective terms
and conditions.
A.
Public utility franchises and all renewals, extensions and amendments
shall be granted by ordinance. No exclusive franchise shall be granted.
No franchise shall be granted for a period longer than 30 years.
B.
A franchise ordinance which is not subject to revocation at the will
of the Village shall not be enacted nor become operative until it
shall first have been referred to the people at a regular or special
election and it has received the affirmative vote of 3/5 of the electors
voting therein. No such franchise ordinance shall be approved by the
Council for referral to the electors before 30 days after it has been
published and notice of its publication has been filed with the Council,
nor until a public hearing has been held nor until the grantee has
filed with the Clerk/Treasurer an unconditional acceptance of all
terms of franchise. No special election for that purpose shall be
ordered by the Council unless the expenses of holding the election,
as determined by the Council, shall have first been paid to the Clerk/Treasurer
by the grantee.
C.
A franchise ordinance which is subject to revocation at the will
of the Village may be enacted by the Council without referral to the
voters, but shall not be enacted nor become operative unless it shall
first be filed with the Clerk/Treasurer in the form in which it is
finally enacted and remain on file for public inspection for at least
30 days before final enactment.
All public utility franchises granted after the adoption of
this Charter, whether provided in the granting ordinance or not, shall
be subject to the following rights of the Village:
A.
To their termination for misuse, non-use, or failure to comply with
franchise provisions;
B.
To require reasonable and adequate extension of plant and service
and plant maintenance at the highest practicable standard of efficiency;
C.
To establish reasonable and practicable standards for service and
quality of products and to prevent unjust discrimination in service
or rates;
D.
To require continuous and uninterrupted service to the public in
accordance with the terms of the franchise throughout its entire period;
E.
To impose such other reasonable regulations as may be conducive to
the health, safety, and general welfare of the public;
F.
To use, control, and regulate the use of its streets, alleys, and
public places and the space above and beneath them;
G.
To require payment of franchise fees or rent for the use of the public
right-of-way, or other public places;
H.
To require the franchisee to pay a part of the cost of improvement
or maintenance of the streets, alleys, and public places of the Village,
as shall arise from its use of them, and to hold the Village harmless
from and indemnify it against all damages and costs arising from its
use;
I.
To require the franchisee to file with the Village drawings and maps
of the location and nature of its facilities, as the Council may request;
and
J.
This enumeration of rights set forth in this section shall not be
exclusive nor impair the right of the Council to include in a franchise
any provision within the power of the Village to impose or require.
The grantee of a franchise may not sell, assign, sublet, or
allow another to use it, without written consent of the Council. Nothing
in this section shall limit the right of the grantee of any public
utility franchise to mortgage its property or franchise, nor to restrict
the rights of the purchaser, upon foreclosure sale, to operate the
same, except that such mortgagee or purchaser shall be subject to
the terms of the franchise and provisions of this Charter.
Competitive bids shall be obtained for the construction of any
public improvement or for the purchase of any materials according
to the Purchasing Policy as adopted or amended by the Village Council.[1]
A.
The Village shall not sell any real property or enter into a contract
for the sale of real property if any part of the property is a recreational
facility as set forth in the Village of Spring Lake Community Recreation
Plan, or declared a recreational facility by the Village Council,
unless said sale of real property or contract for the sale of real
property is approved by a sixty-percent majority of the Village electors
voting on the particular issue at a regular or special election. As
of the adoption of the Charter, the recreational facilities opened
by the Village which are part of the Village of Spring Lake Community
Recreational Plan consist of the following:
(1)
Central Park;
(2)
Lakeside Beach;
(3)
Jackson Street Park;
(4)
Mill Point Park;
(5)
Cutler Street Launch Ramp;
(6)
Riverfront Trailer Park;
(7)
Parkhurst Street End;
(8)
Alden Street End;
(9)
North Buchanan Street End;
(10)
South Buchanan Street End;
(11)
Division Street End;
(12)
Lakeside Trail Linear Park;
(13)
Spring Lake Yacht Club.
B.
The Village may lease, license, or grant an easement in real property
which is a recreational facility as set forth above, and may sell,
lease, license, or transfer any real property or interest in real
property which is not a recreational facility as set forth above,
as long as said action is approved by a two-thirds vote of the Council
members present at a regular or special Council meeting.
