[Ord. No. 210, Sec. 1]
A.
The City of Lincoln, Arkansas, (hereinafter called Grantor) hereby
grants to the Prairie Grove Telephone Company, Inc., its successors
and assigns (hereinafter called Grantee), the exclusive right, privilege
and authority within the present and all future expansions of the
corporate limits of the City of Lincoln, Arkansas, (1) to sell, furnish,
transmit and distribute telephone service and communications to Grantor
and all inhabitants and consumers within said limits, and (2) to construct,
maintain, operate and extend a system for such purposes and to enter
on, under and upon and use any and all of the streets, alleys, avenues,
bridges and other public grounds and ways belonging to, or under the
control of Grantor, for the purpose of erecting, maintaining, repairing,
replacing and operating poles, wires, anchors, stubs, transformers,
substations, cables, conduits and other related facilities, appliances
and apparatus which are necessary for, or useful in the furnishing,
sale, installation or distribution of said telephone service hereinafter
called facilities.
B.
This Grant is expressly subject to all rules and regulations of,
including, but not limited to, territorial assignments by, the Arkansas
Public Service Commission and its successors in authority.
C.
The term main station, as used herein shall be deemed to mean a telephone
line with its individual dial number installed to serve a particular
customer.
[Ord. No. 210, Sec. 2]
Grantee shall, and does by acceptance hereof, agree to provide to the City and its inhabitants adequate and reasonable telephone service and the facilities necessary to provide such service, Grantor in recognition of the large and continuing investment necessary for Grantee to perform its obligations hereunder, and the need and duty to promptly construct its facilities, as defined above, required to serve customers, in all areas and zones of the City, consents to the construction of such facilities as defined in § 4.12.01A in all such areas and zones, and Grantor agrees to protect by ordinance, regulation and otherwise, to the fullest extent permitted by law, and except as otherwise, limited herein, the grants of rights and privileges to Grantee set forth in § 4.12.01A from interference with, or duplication by, other persons, firms or corporations seeking to engage in the sale or distribution of telephone services.
A.
All facilities of Grantee which may be located on public ways, places
and public property, as authorized herein, shall be located so as
to not unreasonably obstruct public use and travel. All of Grantee's
facilities shall be constructed, operated and maintained in accordance
with standards at least equivalent to the standards prescribed by
the National Electrical Code. Grantee, its successors and assigns,
shall replace and repair at its own expense, all excavations, holes
or other damage caused or done by it to public streets, ways, places
and public property in the construction, operation and maintenance
of its facilities.
B.
The Grantee, its successors and assigns, is hereby given the right
to trim, cut or remove trees, shrubbery or growth on or in public
ways, places and public property which interfere or offer hazards
to the operation of Grantee's facilities used or useful for the
rendition of telephone service, and further, Grantee is hereby given
the right, authority and permission to trim cut and remove portions
of trees, shrubbery or growth growing on private property but overhanging
or encroaching on public ways, places and public property which interfere
or offer hazards to the construction, operation and maintenance of
Grantee's facilities.
[Ord. No. 210, Sec. 3]
The rights, privileges and authority hereby granted shall exist
and continue from the date of passage of this ordinance, and thereafter,
until terminated in accordance with provisions of Section 44 of Act
324 of the 1935 Acts of the state of Arkansas, as presently enacted
or hereafter amended.
[Ord. No. 210, Sec. 4]
The rates which are to be charged by Grantee for telephone service
hereunder shall be those which are now lawfully approved or prescribed,
and as said rates may, from time to time, be amended by Grantee in
accordance with law or by any regulatory authority having jurisdiction
thereof.
[Ord. No. 210, Sec. 5]
In the construction, operation and maintenance of its facilities,
said Grantee shall use reasonable and proper precaution to avoid damage
or injury to persons or property and shall hold and save harmless
the said Grantor from damages, injury, loss or expense caused by negligence
of the Grantee, or its agents, servants or employees, in construction,
operation and maintaining said facilities or in paving or repairing
any streets, avenues, alleys, bridges or other public grounds.
[Ord. No. 210, Sec. 6]
The Grantee shall endeavor at all times to keep its facilities
in a reasonable state of repair and to conform to such practices and
install such appliances and equipment as may be in keeping with the
customary usage and practice in cities of similar size in this state
during the time this franchise shall remain in force.
[Ord. No. 210, Sec. 8]
A.
The franchise fee, or privilege tax will be 4.25% of gross revenues
derived from the service and maintenance charges collected on services
rendered within the corporate limits of the City of Lincoln, Arkansas,
and areas for telephone service located in and serving the people
of Lincoln, Arkansas.
[Ord. No. 01-3, Sec. 4]
B.
The Grantee shall have a period of 30 days immediately following
the due date of each quarterly payment during which to compute the
amount to be paid the Grantor.
C.
Grantor shall have the right to examine and verify, from the records
of the Grantee, any data relating to the number of main stations served
by the Grantee on which said franchise tax is based. In the event
of a controversy between the Grantor and Grantee as to the number
of main stations served by Grantee in the City of Lincoln upon which
said tax is based, such controversy shall be referred to the Arkansas
Public Service Commission, or its successor regulatory agency which
may have jurisdiction over the Grantee, for final determination, and
the decision of said Commission shall be binding upon both parties
hereto.
[Ord. No. 210, Sec. 9]
The aforesaid payment shall constitute and be considered as
complete payment and discharge by the Grantee, its successors and
assigns, of all licenses, fees, charges, impositions or taxes of any
kind (other than automobile license fees, special millage taxes, general
ad valorem taxes and other general taxes applicable to all citizens
and taxpayers) which are now or might in the future be imposed by
the Grantor under authority conferred upon the Grantor by law.
[Ord. No. 210, Sec. 10]
A.
The Recorder/Treasurer is hereby designated as the officer responsible
for the administration of the ordinance. The recorder may designate
one or more employees of the City as his agent to enforce and administer
the provisions hereof.
B.
The Recorder/Treasurer or his designated agent may promulgate whatever
rules are necessary and incident to the enforcement of this ordinance.