[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough
of Somerdale 12-14-1988 by Ord. No. 88:10. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
The Borough of Somerdale hereby grants to Choice Cable Corp.
its nonexclusive consent to place in, upon, along, across, above,
over and under the highways, streets, alleys, sidewalks, public ways
and public places in the Borough of Somerdale poles, wires, cables,
underground conduits, manholes and other television conductors and
fixtures necessary for the maintenance and operation in the Borough
of Somerdale 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 purpose 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
of the Federal Communications Commission, FCC Rules and Regulations
§ 76.1 at seq., 47 CFR 517 et seq. (1983), 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 or
state definitions.
Chapter 186 of the General Laws of New Jersey 1972, U.S.A. 48:5A-1 et seq.
The grantee of rights under this ordinance and is known as
"Choice Cable Corp."
The Borough of Somerdale, County of Camden, State of New
Jersey.
A public hearing concerning the consent herein granted to the
company was held on October 12, 1988, after proper public notice pursuant
to the terms and conditions of the act. Said hearing having been held
as above stated and said hearing having been fully open to the public
and the Borough of Somerdale having received at said hearing 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 consent herein granted shall expire 10 years from the date
a certificate of approval is issued by the Board of Public Utilities.
If the Company seeks a successive consent, it shall, prior to
the expiration of this consent, apply for a municipal consent and
certificate of approval in accordance with the Cable Television Act,
N.J.S.A. 48:5A-11 and 5A-1 6 and applicable state and federal rules
and regulations. The company shall also petition the Board for a certificate
of approval authorizing continued operation during the period following
expiration of the consent granted herein and until such a time that
a decision is made by the municipal governing body relative to the
renewal of said consent.
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.
The company shall complete significant construction within one
year of the date upon which it receives a certificate of approval
from the Board. The company shall be required to complete all construction
within the service area described herein within one year thereafter.
The timetable as presented in the application incorporated herein
has been determined to be reasonable by the Borough of Somerdale.
The company shall be required to proffer service to any person's
business or residence located in the franchise territory described
herein in accordance with the proposal for the provision of services
as described in the application.
The consent granted herein to the company shall apply to the
entirety of the municipality and any property hereafter annexed thereto.
A.
Restorations. In the event that the company or its agents shall disturb
any pavement, street 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 in as good
condition as existed prior to the commencement of said work.
B.
Relocations.
(1)
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.
(2)
The company shall temporarily move or remove appropriate parts
of its facility to allow moving of buildings or machinery or in other
similar circumstances. The expense shall be borne by the party requesting
such action except when requested by the municipality, when the company
shall bear the cost.
C.
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 or overhanging any 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 or agent 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 open during normal business hours,
and in no event less than 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday.
The Office of Cable Television is hereby designated as the complaint
officer for the Borough of Somerdale pursuant to N.J.S.A. 48:5A-26b.
All complaints shall be received and processed in accordance with
N.J.A.C. 14:17-7.1.
During the life of the franchise, the company shall give a bond
to the Borough of Somerdale, 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
for municipal consent incorporated herein.
The municipality, having determined that the rates proposed
in the application for cable television reception service are reasonable,
approves them as presented, subject to review by the Board.
A.
The company shall not alter its basic service without first notifying
the municipality and receiving approval of the Office of Cable Television.
B.
The basic service includes those channels which the company is required
to carry by FCC rules and any channel which the company has previously
agreed to carry without a separate or additional charge.
The cable operator shall provide access time to noncommercial
public, governmental and educational entities to the extent that such
access was promised to the municipality during the application and
franchising process.
The company shall provide the installation of one outlet and
basic monthly service to each school and library in the municipality
free of charge. Each additional outlet installation shall be paid
for by the institution on a cost-plus-labor basis. Monthly service
on such additional outlets shall be charged at the regular tariffed
rates for additional outlets.
In the event that the municipality determines that it is necessary
and feasible for it to contract with the company for the purpose of
providing additional equipment or specific services to the municipal
government or its agencies, the company shall be required to apply
to the Board and, if necessary, the FCC for approval to enter into
and establish the terms and conditions of such a contract. All costs
related to such application to the Board and the FCC shall be allocated
and paid in a manner agreeable to the company and the municipality,
subject to approval of the Board.
The company shall be required to have the capability at the
head end to override the audio portion of the system in order to permit
the broadcasting of emergency messages by the municipality. The municipality
shall provide such facilities, or, if such facilities are provided
by the company, it shall be the responsibility of the municipality
to pay for their use. 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 also establish reasonable procedures for such uses.
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 Borough of Somerdale as
an insured and insuring against loss by any such claim, suit, judgment,
execution or demand in the minimum amount of $1,000,000 for bodily
injury or death to one person and for property damage resulting from
any one accident.
The terms of the company's application for municipal consent
are incorporated into this ordinance granting that consent pursuant
to N.J.S.A. 48:5A-24. It is noted that any portion of the application
which is in conflict with the provisions of the Cable Television Act,
N.J.S.A. 48:5A-1 et seq., and/or FCC Rules and Regulations § 76.1
et seq., as amended, is not to be construed as effective under the
terms of this consent. Additionally, it is noted that, to the extent
that the application exceeds the FCC rules, it is considered unenforceable,
pursuant to Arlington Telecommunications Corp. d/b/a/ "ARTEC," FCC
75-670, 53 FCC 2d 757 (1975): Report and Order in D.N. 20272, FCC
75-897, 54 FCC 2d 855 (1975).
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.
All ordinances and provisions which are inconsistent with this
ordinance shall be and are hereby repealed to the extent of such inconsistency.
This ordinance shall take effect immediately upon passage and
publication in accordance with the laws of the State of New Jersey.
