(A) Franchisee must follow local rules. The construction, operation, and repair of cable communications systems shall be performed in compliance with all lawful and applicable laws, ordinances, departmental rules, regulations, and practices affecting such system. By way of example, and not limitation, this includes zoning and safety codes, construction standards, regulations for providing notice to persons that may be affected by system construction, and directives governing the time, place and manner in which facilities may be installed in the public rights-of-way. Persons engaged in the construction, operation, or repair of communications facilities shall exercise reasonable care in the performance of all their activities and shall use commonly accepted methods and devices for preventing failures and accidents that are likely to cause damage, injury, or nuisance to the public or to property.
(B) No permit without franchise. A franchise is required before a permit may be issued for work associated with the construction of a cable communications system. Any permit issued for such work to, or on behalf of, a person that does not hold a franchise shall vest no rights in the permittee; the permit may be revoked at will, and the permittee shall remove all facilities installed under the permit upon the city's demand.
(C) Permits must be obtained. Construction, operation, or repair of a cable communications system shall not commence until all required permits have been obtained from the proper city officials and all required fees have been paid. All work performed will be performed in strict accordance with the conditions of the permit. Upon order of the city, any work and/or construction undertaken that is not completed in compliance with the city's requirements, or which is installed without obtaining necessary permits and approvals shall be removed.
(D) No interference. Interference with the use of the public rights-of-way by others, including others that may be installing cable communications systems, must be minimized. The city may require a person using the public rights-of-way to cooperate with others through joint trenching and other arrangements to minimize adverse impacts on the public rights-of-way.
(E) Plans for and publicizing work. Work shall be publicized as the city may direct from time to time. The publication of work may be used to notify the public and operators of other communications systems of the impending work in order to minimize inconvenience and disruption to the public.
(1) Each cable communications system operator shall provide the city a plan for any initial system construction or for any substantial rebuild, upgrade or extension of its facility, which shall show its timetable for construction of each phase of the project, and the areas of the city that will be affected.
(2) The city may from time to time, when the city receives application for a permit to use a particular route, or upon its own initiative, designate by published order a route or proposed route for installation of communications facilities and may: (1) require all persons who wish to emplace underground facilities along that route or any part thereof to install them during a specified period; and (2) otherwise prohibit emplacement of such facilities along the route or any part thereof for 24 months or after such other, longer period as is necessary to protect the public interest.
(F) Existing poles to be used. To the extent possible, operators of cable communications systems shall use existing poles and conduit. Additional poles may not be installed in the right-of-way, nor may pole capacity be increased by vertical or horizontal extenders, without the permission of the city.
(1) To minimize disruption of public passage or infrastructure, to forestall or relieve exhaustion of public rights-of-way capacity, or to protect environmentally sensitive areas, the city may require as a condition of issuing any public rights-of-way permit for erection of new poles or construction of underground conduit, the installation of which requires excavation of or along any traveled way, that the franchisee, licensee, or holder of the rights-of-way permit emplace pole space or empty conduits in excess of its own present and reasonably foreseeable requirements for the purpose of accommodating the city and/or other franchisees and licensees.
(G) Undergrounding.
(1) Whenever all existing utilities are located underground in an area in the city, every cable communications system operator in the same area must locate its cable communications system underground.
(2) Whenever the owner of a pole locates or relocates underground within an area of the city, every cable communications system operator in the same area shall concurrently relocate its facilities underground.
(3) The City Manager may, for good cause shown, exempt a particular system or facility or group of facilities from the obligation to locate or relocate facilities underground, where relocation is impractical, where ordinary engineering practices making undergrounding impractical, or where the city and the subscriber's interest can be protected in another manner. Nothing in this division (G) prevents the city from ordering communications facilities to be located or relocated underground under other provisions of the municipal code.
(H) Prompt repairs. Any and all public rights-of-way, other public property, or private property that is disturbed or damaged during the construction, operation, maintenance or repair of a cable communications system shall be promptly repaired by the operator. Public property and public rights-of- way must be restored to the satisfaction of the city and to a condition as good or better than before the disturbance or damage occurred. No tree trimming shall be performed without the permission of the city and other affected authorities, and any tree trimming must be performed in strict accordance with the municipal code.
(I) Movement of facilities for government.
(1) A cable communications system operator shall, within a reasonable period of time specified by the city, protect, support, temporarily disconnect, relocate, or remove any of its property when required by the city by reason of traffic conditions; public safety; public right-of-way construction and repair (including regrading, resurfacing or widening); public right-of-way vacation; construction, installation or repair of sewers, drains, water pipes, power lines, signal lines, tracks, or any other type of government-owned system or utility, public work, public facility, or improvement; or for any other purpose where the work involved would be aided by the removal or relocation of the cable communications system. Collectively, such matters are referred to below as the “public work.”
(2) The city shall provide written notice describing where the public work is to be performed as far in advance as reasonably possible but in any event at least one week prior to the deadline by which a cable communications system operator must protect, support, temporarily disconnect, relocate or remove its facilities. Such action on the part of the franchisee shall be undertaken at no cost to the city. Provided that, in an emergency where a cable communications system creates or is contributing to an imminent danger to health, safety, or property, the city need not provide one week's written notice but should make an effort to contact the franchisee by telephone to enable the franchisee to take prompt action. After such effort on the part of the city to contact the franchisee by telephone, the city may protect, support, temporarily disconnect, remove, or relocate any or all parts of the cable communications system without further notice, and charge the cable communications system operator for costs incurred.
(J) Movement for others.
(1) To accommodate the construction, operation, or repair of the facilities of another person authorized to use the public rights-of-way or public property, a franchisee shall, by a reasonable time specified by such person, protect, support, temporarily disconnect, temporarily relocate or temporarily remove its facilities. The franchisee must be given written notice describing where the construction, operation or repair is to be performed at least 15 days prior to the time by which its work must be completed.
(2) A cable communications system operator shall, on the request of any person holding a valid permit issued by a governmental authority, temporarily raise or lower its wires by a time specified to permit the moving of buildings or other objects. A cable communications system operator shall be given not less than seven days advance notice to arrange for such temporary wire changes. The reasonable costs associated with of such temporary removal, relaying, relocation, or raising or lowering of wires shall be paid in advance by the person requesting the same.
(K) Abandonment in place.
(1) A cable communications system operator may abandon any property in place in the public rights-of-way upon written notice to the city. However, if, within 90 days of the receipt of written notice of abandonment, the city determines that the safety, appearance, functioning or use of the public right-of- way and facilities in the public right-of-way will be adversely affected, the property must be removed by a date specified by the city.
(2) A cable communications system operator that abandons its property must, upon request, transfer ownership of the properties to the city at no cost, and execute necessary quitclaim deeds and indemnify the City against future costs associated with mitigating or eliminating any environmental hazard associated with the abandoned property.
(L) System subject to inspection. Every cable communications system facility shall be subject to inspection and testing by the city upon reasonable prior notice and conditions. Each operator must respond to requests for information regarding its system and plans for the system as the city may from time to time issue, including requests for information regarding its plans for construction, operation and repair and the purposes for which the plant is being constructed, operated, or repaired.
(M) Underground services alert. Each operator of a cable communications system that places facilities underground shall be a member of the regional notification center for subsurface installations (Underground Services Alert) and shall field mark the locations of its underground communications facilities upon request. The operator shall identify the location of its cable communication system for the city at no charge.
(N) Plan for construction. Every franchise shall specify for the city a construction schedule that will apply to any required construction, upgrade or rebuild of the cable communications system. The schedule shall provide for the prompt completion of the project, shall show its timetable for construction of each phase of the project, with benchmarks for deliverables and the areas of the city that will be affected. The city shall have the right to impose penalties on the operator for a failure to meet the accepted timetable and benchmarks.
(O) Use of facilities by the city. The city shall have the right to install and maintain, free of charge upon any poles or in any conduit owned by a franchisee, any wire and pole fixtures that do not unreasonably interfere with the cable service operations of the franchisee.
(Ord. 678-C.S., passed 4-20-04)