[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of South
River 2-12-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-5.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Cable Television Advisory Board — See Ch. 22, Art. X.
[1]
Editor's Note This ordinance also superseded former Ch. A247, Cable
Television Franchise, adopted 12-18-1991 by Ord. No. 1991-40.
The Borough hereby grants to Comcast Cablevision of New Jersey, Inc.,
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 Borough 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
Borough of a cable television and communications system.
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, 47 CFR 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:
The Borough of South River, County of Middlesex, State of New Jersey.
The grantee of rights under this ordinance and is known as "Comcast
Cablevision of New Jersey, Inc."
Chapter 186 of the General Laws of New Jersey, and subsequent amendments
thereto, N.J.S.A. 48:5A-1 et seq.
The Federal Communications Commission.
The Board of Public Utilities, State of New Jersey.
The Office of Cable Television of the Board.
Any service tier, which includes the retransmission of local television
broadcast signals as defined by the FCC.
Public hearings conducted by the Borough, concerning the renewal of
municipal consent herein granted to the company, were held after proper public
notice pursuant to the terms and conditions of the Act and the regulations
of the Board adopted pursuant thereto. Said hearings, having been fully opened
to the public, and the Borough, having received at said public hearings all
comments regarding the qualifications of the company to receive this renewal
of municipal consent, the Borough 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.
A.
The nonexclusive municipal consent granted herein shall
expire 15 years from the date of expiration of the previous certificate of
approval issued by the Board. Said consent is subject to an automatic renewal
of term of 10 years in accordance with the procedures set forth in N.J.S.A.
48:5A-19 and N.J.A.C. 14:18-3.6 et seq.
B.
The performance of Comcast Cablevision of New Jersey
shall be reviewable by the Borough by the end of the fifth, 10th, and 15th
years of the initial consent term and the fifth year of the automatic renewal.
During the periods beginning on the fourth, ninth, and 14th anniversaries
of the initial consent, and the fourth anniversary of the automatic renewal,
the company shall write to the Borough advising the Borough of its rights
to review the company's performance under this ordinance, shall present such
reasonable and pertinent information as the Borough may request and shall
appear upon request before a meeting of the Borough Council to answer questions
about the operations of the company and its performance. Any review process
shall be completed within six months of the initiating letter sent by Comcast.
Upon expiration of the six-month period without a determination that the municipal
consent be revoked, the consent shall continue in full force and effect.
C.
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
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. Any such finding
shall contain a full statement of the reasons for revocation and shall be
forwarded to the State Office of Cable Television for proceedings in accordance
with state law.
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
Borough 2% of the gross revenues from all recurring charges in the nature
of subscription fees paid by subscribers for cable television reception service
in the Borough 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 Borough and any property subsequently annexed
hereto.
The company shall be required to proffer service along any public right-of-way
to any person's residence or business located in all areas of the franchise
territory as described herein, at tariffed rates for standard and nonstandard
installations.
A.
The company has completed an upgrade of the cable television
distribution system serving the Borough. The upgraded system is a hybrid fiber
optic/coaxial cable system following a "fiber to the node" architecture. The
upgraded system provides improved picture quality, enhanced signal reliability
and increased channel capacity.
B.
The upgrade has been completed following the company's
engineering guidelines for hybrid fiber/coaxial (HFC) plant design, which
meets or exceed all applicable state and federal regulations as well as voluntary
cable television industry standards and follows commonly accepted industry
practices.
A.
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.
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 or relocate its equipment, at the expense of the company.
C.
Temporary removal of cables. The company shall, upon
request of the municipality at the company's expense, temporarily raise, lower,
or remove its lines in order to facilitate the moving of buildings or machinery
or in other like circumstances. Whenever the request is made by, for, or on
behalf of private parties, the cost will be borne by those same parties.
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 or
other 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
of the company's wires and cables.
In providing services to its customers, the company shall comply with
N.J.A.C. 14:18-1 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 community upon written request of the Borough Administrator
or Clerk.
A.
The company shall continue to comply fully with all applicable
state and federal statutes and regulations regarding credits for outages,
the reporting of same to regulatory agencies and notification of same to customers.
B.
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.
The company shall use every effort to meet or exceed
voluntary standards for telephone accessibility developed by the National
Cable Television Association (NCTA). Those standards shall include, but not
be limited to, the goal of answering 90% of incoming telephone calls within
30 seconds.
D.
Nothing herein shall impair the right of any subscriber
or the municipality 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 appropriate under law.
E.
The company is permitted, but is not required, to charge
a late fee consistent with applicable state and federal statutes and regulations.
The Office of Cable Television is hereby designated as the complaint
officer for the municipality pursuant to N.J.S.A. 48:5A-26b. All complaints
shall be received and processed in accordance with N.J.A.C. 14:17-6.5. The
municipality shall have the right to request copies of records and reports
pertaining to complaints by Borough customers from the OCTV.
A.
During the term of this franchise, and any renewal thereof,
the company shall maintain a local business or agent within the Borough limits
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. Telephone response
for such purposes as mentioned herein will be provided by the company's employees,
representatives or agents 24 hours per day.
B.
The telephone number and address of the local office
shall be listed in applicable telephone directories and in correspondence
from the company to the customer. The telephone number for the local office
shall utilize an exchange that is a nontoll call for Borough residents.
During the life of the franchise the company shall give to the municipality
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.
The company shall continue to provide residents with
system-wide public access opportunities on a channel maintained by the company.
Qualified individuals and organizations may utilize public access for the
purpose of cablecasting noncommercial access programming in conformance with
the company's published public access rules.
B.
The company shall continue to provide system-wide leased
or commercial access channel opportunities on a channel maintained by the
company for the purpose of cablecasting commercial access programming in conformance
with the company's guidelines and applicable state and federal statutes and
regulations.
C.
The company shall continue to provide three dedicated
public, educational, and government access channels as set forth in its application.
The company agrees to a total of two relocations of the wiring and modulator
for these channels on request of and at no cost to the Borough, provided such
relocation can be accomplished without significant cost or technical difficulty.
D.
The company shall take any steps that are necessary to
ensure that the signals originated on the access channels are carried without
material degradation, and with a signal whose quality is equal to that of
the other channels that the company transmits.
E.
The company agrees to respond to public, educational
and governmental access channel problems within 48 hours of notification of
the problem, provided that there are no other simultaneous system problems
of a higher priority.
A.
Company representatives shall appear at least once annually,
upon reasonable written request of the Borough, at a public hearing of the
governing body or before the Borough's Cable Television Advisory Committee,
to discuss matters pertaining to the provision of cable service to residents
of the Borough and other related issues as the Borough and company may see
fit.
B.
The company shall make every effort to deploy new or
advanced technology and/or services in the Borough that are commercially available,
economically practicable, and technically feasible. That technology shall
include but not be limited to video-on-demand; digital video compression;
advanced or high-definition television, digital audio services; digital television,
high-speed Internet service via cable modem; and interactive program guides.
C.
Pole rental and electricity charges. The company agrees
to a base 10% increase in pole rental and electricity charges, and in rental
of space on the water tower, on January 1 of the first calendar year after
issuance of a certificate of approval (COA) by the Board of Public Utilities,
with subsequent annual increases on January first for the length of the franchise
tied to the consumer price index (with a cap of 5% in any one year), as long
as the Borough remains the owner of the poles and provider of electricity
within its borders.
D.
The company will provide a one-time access support grant
in the amount of $60,000 no later than 12 months of the issuance of a certificate
of approval by the Board of Public Utilities. In addition, the company will
provide a camera and equipment package worth $25,000 or its equivalent no
later than 12 months of the issuance of a certificate of approval by the Board
of Public Utilities.
E.
The company will videotape up to two events per year
upon request of the Borough and provide the tape to the Borough for use on
its access channels. The Borough will give the company at least four weeks'
notice in advance of the events to be taped.
F.
The company shall continue to provide a free standard
installation and free monthly basic service to one location in each municipal
building, including the Borough Hall; all libraries, fire, first aid, and
police departments; public works buildings; and municipally owned community
and senior centers. The company does hereby realize that the South River Municipal
Building is currently being renovated and the company does hereby agree at
no cost to the Borough to provide the necessary free cable installations and
transfer with respect to said building.
G.
The company shall continue to provide a free standard
installation and free monthly basic service to each public and private elementary,
middle, and secondary school in the Borough.
I.
Residents of the Borough wishing to subscribe to Internet
service offered through the company shall not be required to purchase cable
TV service in order to do so.
In the event that the Borough determines that it is necessary and feasible
for it to contract with the company for the purpose of providing two-way or
interconnection services, the company shall be required to apply to the BPU
for approval to enter into and establish the terms and conditions of such
contract. All costs for such application to the BPU shall be borne by the
Borough.
A.
The company shall be required to fully comply with all
applicable federal and state statutes, rules and regulations governing the
implementation, operation and testing of the Emergency Alert System (EAS).
B.
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 company shall at all times maintain a comprehensive general liability
insurance policy with a single limit amount of $1,000,000 covering liability
for any death, personal injury, property damage 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 $3,000,000.
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 municipal consent. The application and any other relevant writings
submitted by the company shall be considered a part of this ordinance and
made a part hereof by reference as long as it does not conflict with state
or federal law. All ordinances or parts of ordinances or other agreements
between the Borough and the company that are in conflict with the provisions
of this agreement are hereby declared invalid and superseded.
Should the Borough grant 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 that 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
or federal or state agency of competent jurisdiction, such portion shall be
deemed a separate, distinct and independent provision, and its validity or
unconstitutionality shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions
of this ordinance.
This ordinance shall take effect immediately upon issuance of a renewal
certificate of approval from the BPU.
