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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance - 2005-O0042 - Granting Friendship Cable; Dba Cebridge Connectons To Conduct Privlege/Franchise - 04/14/2005first Reading April 14. 2005 Item 41 ORDINANCE NO. 2005-()0042 Second Reading May 12,2005 Item No. 11 AN ORDINANCE GRANTING TO FRIENDSHIP CABLE OF TEXAS, INC., DOING BUSINESS (DBA) IN THE CITY OF LUBBOCK AS CEBRIDGE CONNECTIONS, A CABLE SYSTEM ANNEXED INTO THE CITY OF LUBBOCK, THE RIGHT, PRNILEGE AND FRANCHISE TO CONTINUE TO CONDUCT WITHIN THE ANNEXED AREA OF THE CITY OF LUBBOCK A CABLE SYSTEM; AND PROVIDING THEREIN FOR DEFINITIONS; SERVICES, EQUIPMENT AND FACILITIES; A TERM; FRANCHISE FEES; INSURANCE; OTHER DUTIES; AMENDMENT; ACCEPTANCE OF FRANCIDSE; RATES; PUBLICATION; AN EFFECTIVE DATE; AND A SAVINGS CLAUSE. WHEREAS, Ordinance No. 10134, the City of Lubbock's cable television regulatory ordinance, exempts certain cable television providers from its universal service requirement throughout the City of Lubbock in the situation where the cable television provider was annexed into the City of Lubbock involuntarily; and WHEREAS, said cable television regulatory ordinance permits such cable television providers to continue to provide cable television services in such newly annexed areas by franchise if they desire to do so; and WHEREAS, the City of Lubbock has received notification of intent to renew a cable system franchise for service within an annexed area of the City of Lubbock from Friendship Cable of Texas, Inc., doing business in the City of Lubbock as Cebridge Connections; and WHEREAS, the City of Lubbock has heretofore given public notice of such notification and proposal and has received public comment on Aprill4, 2005, at a public hearing conducted for such purpose and has otherwise investigated the performance of the franchisee; and WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Lubbock received such public comment in order to determine whether the existing franchisee hereinafter called "Company," has complied with the conditions of and performed its obligations under its existing franchise agreement to the satisfaction of the City and the Company's Subscribers; and WHEREAS, the City Council, following such considerations as are hereinabove set forth, has determined that the Company has met such conditions of and performed its obligations under its existing franchise agreement; and WHEREAS, the City of Lubbock has authority to grant non-exclusive franchises under applicable state law and constitutional provisions pursuant to its authority to operate as a home rule municipality and to regulate and control the use of public streets, alleys, and rights-of-way; and WHEREAS, the Company's commitments hereunder are, in fact, given by the Company in consideration for the grant of authority hereunder to make use of said public streets, alleys, and rights-of-way held by the City of Lubbock in the Company's annexed area in trust for the citizens of Lubbock; and WHEREAS, the City Council, based upon the findings upon the Company's prior performance hereinabove set out and the Company's new proposal, and the report thereon, and the public hearing held upon this matter, fmds it to be in the public interest to enter into a renewal of the Company's non-exclusive franchise upon the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth; NOW THEREFORE: BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF LUBBOCK: 1. GRANT. That subject to the terms, conditions, and provisions of this Ordinance and of the City of Lubbock Ordinance No. 10134, which ordinance is hereby incorporated herein by reference and which shall be a part hereof for all intents and purposes as if said Ordinance No. 10134 were copied herein in its entirety, the City of Lubbock does hereby grant unto Friendship Cable of Texas, Inc., doing business in Lubbock as Cebridge Connections, the right, privilege and franchise to conduct within the boundaries of the City of Lubbock in the area of the annexation which brought such service into the City of Lubbock, a Cable System business with the right to enter upon and erect, construct, maintain, extend, repair, replace, and remove in, under, upon, within, over, above, across, and along any and all present and future public streets, alleys and rights-of-way of the City ofLubbock within such annexed area such equipment and appurtenances thereto as are necessary, proper and reasonably needed for said Cable System business to the extent that the City is authorized to grant such right. 2. DEFINITIONS. All definitions shall be the same as, and in accord with, definitions defined in Ordinance No. 10134 of the City ofLubbock. 3. SERVICES. EQUIPMENT AND FACILITIES. (a) The Company shall initially provide the programming services specified in the "Schedule of Services" attached hereto as Exhibit A and incorporated herein by reference for all purposes. Such programming may be changed by Grantee to meet customer satisfaction as it deems fit. (b) The Company shall provide equipment and/or facilities equivalent to or better than the equipment and/or facilities specified in the "Schedule of 2 Equipment/Facilities'1 attached hereto as Exhibit Band incorporated herein by reference for all purposes. (c) The Company's Lubbock Cable System shall meet or exceed the technical and design requirements of the FCC. 4. TERM. The term of this agreement shall be for fifteen (15) years from the effective date of this Ordinance. 5. FRANCIDSE FEE. The Company hereby agrees that it will pay a franchise fee of five percent (5%) of its Gross Revenues, as that term is defined in Ordinance No. 10134. Said franchise fee shall be paid on a quarterly basis, not later than sixty (60) days after the last day of each March, June, September and December. 6. INSURANCE. The Company shall provide liability insurance meeting the requirements of Ordinance No. 10134 and in the amounts stated in the Company's application for franchise, which application is incorporated herein by reference and made a part hereof for all intents and purposes. 7. OTHER DUTIES. The Company shall pay to the City all other monies; install all other services; and perform all other terms and conditions to be performed by the Company pursuant to this Ordinance and Ordinance No. 10134. 8. AMENDMENT. This Ordinance may be amended at any time by amendment of this Ordinance by the City Council of the City of Lubbock after the City and Company agree on such amendment. Provided however that the City may in the exercise of its police power, amend this Ordinance to protect the public health and safety. The Company has the right to request such amendments to this Ordinance by the City Council as it may desire. 9. ACCEPTANCE OFFRANCIDSE. The Company shall, within thirty (30) days from the date of final passage of this Ordinance by the City Council of the City of Lubbock, file with the City Secretary of the City of Lubbock, a written statement signed in its name and behalfby officers of Friendship Cable of Texas, Inc., doing business as Cebridge Communications, all of whom hereby represent that they are duly authorized to sign and make such an agreement, in the following form: "The Honorable Mayor and the City Council of the City of Lubbock: Friendship Cable of Texas, Inc., doing business as Cebridge Communications, for itself, and its successors and assigns, hereby accepts the attached Cable System Franchise Ordinance as finally passed by the City Council of the City of Lubbock on the __ day of , 2004, and hereby agrees to be bound by all of its terms and provisions. 3 DATE: __________________ _ FRIENDSHIP CABLE OF TEXAS, INC., DBA CEBRIDGE CONNECTIONS: BY: Senior Vice President of Operations 10. RATES. Rates to be charged for Cable Service furnished within the City of Lubbock shall be in accordance with rate regulations of the FCC and a copy of such rates shall be placed on file with the City Secretary of the City of Lubbock, which rate schedule shall be updated by the Company as required to reflect current rates during the term of this franchise. Both parties hereto recognize and agree that the City may regulate such rates as may be permitted by federal law during the term of this franchise. However, such regulation shall not be commenced without reasonable written notice to the Company of not less than sixty ( 60) days. 11. PUBLICATION. The full text of this Ordinance, as finally proposed to be passed shall be published once each week for three (3) consecutive weeks in a newspaper of general circulation published in the City of Lubbock, and the expense of such publication shall be borne by the Company. 12. EFFECTIVE DATE. In accordance with the Charter of the City of Lubbock, this Ordinance shall become effective 30 days from the last publication of this ordinance, which publication was upon the 4th day of May, 2005. ~. 13. SAVINGS CLAUSE. That should any section, paragraph, sentence, clause, phrase or word of this Ordinance be declared unconstitutional or invalid for any reason, the remainder of this Ordinance shall not be affected thereby. AND IT IS SO ORDERED. Passed by City Council on first reading the 14th day of-4'~............_ ____ , 2005. Passed by City Council on second reading the 12th day 2005. ATTEST: Rebecca Garza, City Secretary 4 APPROVED AS T01RM ~~~K Donald G. V andtver, Attorney of COlmsel Odord/FriendshipCableOrd April 4, 2005 5 THE STATE OF TEXAS )( .. .. COUNTY OF LUBBOCK )( BEFORE ME Mary Ann Garcia, a Notary Public in and for Lubbock County, Texas on this day personally appeared Ernest F. Barton, of the West Texas Hispanic News weekly, who being by me duly sworn did depose and say that said newspaper bas been published continuously for more than fifty-two weeks prior to the first insertion of this Legal Notice at Lubbock County, Texas, and the attached printed copy of the Legal Notice is a true copy of the original and was printed in the West Texas Hispanic News on the following dates: April 20, 2005, April 27, 2005, and May 4, 2005, 72 Column Inches at 648.00 $9.00 colo inch • Ernest F. Barton Name Publisher/Editor-West Texas Hispanic News Title RECEIVED MAY o S ZOOS CITY SECRETARY lUBBOCK, TEXAS