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1. Definitions. The following terms are defined for use in this section:
A. “Management costs” means the reasonable cost the City actually incurs in managing public rights-of-way.
B. “Public right-of-way” means the area on or below a public roadway, highway, street, bridge, cartway, bicycle lane, or public sidewalk in which the City has an interest, including other dedicated rights-of-way for travel purposes and utility easements. A public right-of-way does not include the airways above a public right-of-way in regard to cellular or other non-wired telecommunications or broadcasts service or utility poles owned by a local government or municipal utility.
C. “Public Utility” means a person owning or operating a facility used for furnishing natural gas by pipe distribution system, electricity, communication services not including cable television systems, or water by pipe distribution system, to the public for compensation.
2. The City shall not recover any fee from a public utility for the uses of its right-of-way, other than a fee for its management costs. The City may recover from a public utility those management costs caused by the public utility’s activity in the public right-of-way. A fee or other obligation under this section shall be imposed on a competitively neutral basis. When the City’s management costs cannot be attributed to only one entity, those costs shall be allocated among all users of the public rights-of-way, including the City itself. The allocation shall reflect proportionately the costs incurred by the City as a result of the various types of uses of the public right-of-way.
3. This section does not prohibit the collection of a franchise fee. If the City collects a franchise fee from an entity pursuant to Section 364.2(4) of the Code of Iowa, under an existing or future franchise, the City shall not also collect a management fee from that entity under this section.
4. In addition to the payment of the management costs, the franchisee, licensee, or lessee shall pay for all City costs when there is an excavation of a right-of-way. These costs shall include all City construction costs, costs for street degradation and replacement, obstructing and routing of pedestrian and vehicle traffic and $5.00 per square foot or fraction thereof for any concrete or asphalt cut.
5. All or part of these costs may be waived if work is done in conjunction with City construction.
The facilities, fixtures and equipment of the distribution, transmission or sale of any utility services, or services provided under franchise, license or lease or easement, shall be placed and maintained so as not to unnecessarily or unreasonably interfere with the travel on the streets, highways, avenues, alleys, bridges and public places in the City, nor shall such facilities, fixtures and equipment interfere with the proper use of the same, including, but not limited to, ordinary drainage, or the functioning of the sewers, underground pipe or other property of the City. In the event that facilities, fixtures and equipment of any person or other entity located within a public right-of-way must be relocated because of paving, road construction or road reconstruction, sewer construction or sewer reconstruction, or the construction or reconstruction of public drainage systems or similar public works or the construction or reconstruction of the facilities of any City-owned utility, such relocation, at the written request of the City, shall be completed by the owner of such facilities at the owner’s cost. The City shall upon request of any person or other entity holding a franchise, license or lease, review any plans for the construction of facilities, fixtures and equipment within the public right-of-way and advise the person or other entity of any conflict such construction may have with planned or anticipated public improvements, but failure of the City to so advise such person or other entity will not relieve the owner of such facilities of its obligations under this chapter. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the City Public Works Director may require placement of equipment or facilities belonging to any holder of a franchise, license or lease be limited to locations designated by the Public Works Director if such limitation is deemed by the Public Works Director to be necessary to protect the integrity or use of present and future users of the public right-of-way or other public property.
The holder of any franchise, license or lease shall indemnify and hold the City harmless at all times during the term of the franchise, license or lease from and against all claims for injury or damage to any person or property, including payments under workers’ compensation laws, caused by the construction, erection, operation or maintenance of its facilities, fixtures or equipment, or the negligence of its contractors or its employees. In case of any suit or action at law being commenced against the City, upon any claim for damage arising out of any loss, injury or damage claimed to have been caused by any installation, improvement, obstruction or excavation made or left in, under or upon such street, sidewalk, alley or public place by the holder of a franchise, license or lease, its agents, contractors or employees, upon being notified in writing by the City of such action or proceeding, the holder of said franchise, license or lease shall appear and make proper defense thereto at the expense of the holder of the franchise, license or lease; and if any judgment or decree shall in any such case be rendered against the City therein, the holder of said franchise, license or lease shall assume, pay and satisfy such judgment or decree, with the cost thereof. Immediately upon issuance of the franchise, license or lease, the holder of the franchise, license or lease shall purchase general liability insurance. The amount of insurance shall be a minimum of $1,000,000 with a maximum deductible of $5,000. The holder of the franchise, license or lease shall file with the Clerk a certificate of insurance which clearly discloses on its face coverage in conformity with these requirements. Upon request of the City, the holder of the franchise, license or lease shall submit a certified copy of the policy.
A written permit will be obtained from the Public Works Director whenever it becomes necessary for the holder of any franchise, license or lease to excavate in streets or public grounds of the City. Such permits shall state a particular part or point of the street where the excavation is to be made and the length of time in which such permit shall authorize the work to be done. An exception to a requirement for a permit shall be made in cases of emergency involving public safety, in which case a permit will be obtained at the earliest opportunity after the work has started. In making excavations in the streets, the holder of any franchise, license or lease shall proceed with such work as to cause the least possible inconvenience to the public. The holder of any franchise, license or lease shall properly protect, according to safety standards generally accepted at the time of placement, as may be determined from time to time by the Public Works Director, all excavations and obstructions by proper placement of shoring, surface plates, barricades, warning lights and such other or additional devices as circumstances may warrant. If in the opinion of the Public Works Director, such excavation or obstruction is not properly and safely protected, the Public Works Director, shall notify such holder of a franchise, license or lease who shall immediately comply with such reasonable instructions. Immediately after use, any trenches for excavations which the holder of a franchise, license or lease has opened shall be filled. However, no trench or excavation in the streets shall be filled or covered without giving the City the right to inspect the same. All backfilling in streets will be according to City specifications. Temporary street surfacing will be placed in such excavations as soon as the same has been backfilled. Pavements, sidewalks, curbs and gutters or other portions of streets and public places opened, disturbed or damaged shall be promptly restored and replaced with like materials at the expense of the holder of a franchise, license or lease and left in as good condition as before the opening, disturbance or damage occurred. In the event like replacement materials are not available, the holder of the franchise, license or lease shall notify the Public Works Director who must approve the use of any alternate materials. In the event that the holder of a franchise, license or lease fails to comply with the provisions of this section, after having been given reasonable notice, the City may do such works as may be needed to properly repair such pavements, sidewalks, curbs and gutters or other portions of streets and public places and the cost thereof shall be repaid to the City by the holder of the franchise, license or lease. In cases where a cut or disturbance is made in a section of street paving or sidewalks, but causes greater disturbance than to just the area cut, rather than replace only the area cut, the holder of a franchise, license or lease shall replace that area as may be ordered by the Public Works Director, which in no event shall exceed the panel or panels disturbed.
Whenever the City shall pave or repave any street or shall change the grade line of any street or public place or shall construct or reconstruct any conduit, water main service or water connection, sewer or other City-owned public works or City-owned utility, it shall be the duty of the holder of any franchise, license or lease, when so ordered by the City, to relocate its service lines and other property in the streets or other public places at its own expense so as to conform to the established grade or line of such street or public place and so as not to interfere with the public improvements so constructed or reconstructed. In the case of other public improvements, including but not limited to urban renewal projects, the City may require the holder of a franchise, license or lease to relocate its poles, service lines and appurtenances in the streets at the owner’s expense. The City may at its discretion assign personnel for inspection of excavation and related work being performed by the holder of a franchise, license or lease. Should the holder of the franchise, license or lease fail or refuse to do and perform the things provided in this section, the City may, after reasonable notice, perform the work and charge the expense thereof to the holder of the franchise, license or lease and the holder of the franchise, license or lease shall promptly pay said charges.
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