(a) Applicability. The Director of Public Service or his/her designee, in their discretion, is hereby authorized to make wireless and fixed broadband services available, upon request, to residential customers in the City of Fairlawn and the Akron-Bath Township-Fairlawn Joint Economic Development District ("JEDD"). As may be determined by the Director of Public Service or his/her designee, such internet services may include telephone services that can be made available to residential customers through use of the wireless and fixed broadband network. All requests for fixed broadband and wireless service (or telephone service) by residential customers shall be subject to the terms and conditions of this section.
(b) Customer Agreements. The Director of Public Service or his/her designee shall be authorized to develop and enter into written customer agreements with any residents of the City or the JEDD relating to any wireless, fixed broadband, and/or telephone services provided by the City. The Director of Public Service or his/her designee shall establish the types and bandwidth for any internet services and the other terms and conditions of residential customer agreements. The minimum term of service for billing shall be one month. Subject to the terms and conditions of this section, the Director of Public Service or his/her designee shall have the authority to refuse, discontinue, or terminate service to any customer who fails to sign a written customer agreement or to provide service without a written customer agreement.
(c) Acceptable Use Policy. The Director of Public Service or his/her designee shall be authorized to develop, adopt, and implement an Acceptable Use Policy and Digital Millennium Copyright Act policy that shall apply to all customers. Such policies shall be posted on the FairlawnGig website, www.fairlawngig.net, and made available to customers upon request.
(d) Rates. Residential rates for fixed broadband and wireless services shall be determined by Council from time to time, and shall be posted on the FairlawnGig website, www.fairlawngig.net, and made available to existing and potential customers upon request. Residential rates are subject to change as may be determined by Council, and are exclusive of any taxes, charges, or other fees that may be applicable to residential customers under this section, their customer agreements, or other applicable law.
(e) Installations and Equipment. The Director of Public Service or his/her designee shall be authorized to perform installations for residential customers and to provide each residential customer with all equipment that may be necessary to provide wireless or fixed broadband services to such customer. The Director of Public Service or his/her designee shall determine the terms and conditions that shall govern the installation and use of equipment, and any deposits or other charges that may be applicable to the installation and use of such equipment.
(1) Ownership of equipment. Any equipment installed or provided to a FairlawnGig customer by the City shall remain the property of the City and shall be returned to the City, at the request of the Director of Public Service or his/her designee, upon the termination of service or upon any other circumstances that may be determined by the Director of Public Service or his/her designee.
(2) Damage to equipment. No person shall destroy, damage, or tamper with any equipment owned and/or used by the City to provide internet broadband or telephone service to any FairlawnGig residential customer. To the extent that any of the City’s equipment is damaged after it has been installed within a dwelling or on the property of a residential customer, then the Director of Public Service or his/her designee shall be authorized, in their discretion, to seek reimbursement of such property damage from the residential customer and shall have the discretion to terminate service. This is a non-exclusive remedy that is in addition to any other criminal or civil remedies that may be available at law.
(f) Installation, Repair and Equipment Charges and Fees. The Director of Finance and the Director of Public Service or his/her designee shall be authorized to adopt, charge, and collect installation fees, equipment fees, repair charges, connection and reconnection charges, deposits, and other fees and charges that may be applicable to residential customers. The Director of Public Service or his/her designee also shall have the authority to make changes in installation fees, equipment fees, repair charges, connection and reconnection charges, and other fees and charges as may be needed to compensate for changes in costs and technology, and shall have the authority and the discretion to waive or reduce installation fees, equipment fees, repair charges, connection and reconnection charges, or other fees as he or she may deem appropriate on a case-by-case basis.
(g) Invoicing, Billing and Collections. The Director of Finance or his/her designee, and/or the Director of Public Service or his or her designee, shall be authorized to issue monthly invoices to residential customers for all services provided, plus any other fees, taxes, or charges that may be owed. Payment of such invoices shall be subject to the terms of any billing policies that may be adopted by the Director of Public Service or his/her designee and the terms of any customer agreements.
(1) Federal and State taxes and fees. The Director of Finance or his/her designee, and/or the Director of Public Service or his/her designee, shall be authorized to charge and collect any applicable Federal, State or local taxes or fees relating to the wireless and broadband service provided to residential customers.
(2) Late fees and interest. The Director of Finance and/or the Director of Public Service or his/her designee shall be authorized to collect a late fee of no more than $15 per invoice, plus interest on any unpaid balance at a rate of 1½ percent per month. Such authority shall include the authority to waive any late fees or interest charges as may be appropriate.
(3) Collection. The Director of Finance and his/her designees shall be responsible for the collection and accounting of all revenues received from FairlawnGig customers in accordance with proper internal control methods and shall deposit such revenues in the City's Broadband Fund (#510).
(h) Promotions. The Director of Public Service or his/her designee shall have the authority to establish promotional or customer retention programs in order to gain or retain customers as needed. Such programs may include customer incentives or other promotional rates as may be determined by the Director of Public Service or his/her designee.
(i) Credits. The Director of Public Service or his/her designee shall have the authority to adjust and or credit a customer's internet bill in situations where warranted due to outages in service, equipment or other related system failures not related to weather or failures beyond the control of the City.
(j) Multi-Dwelling Unit Buildings. The Director of Public Service or his/her designee may negotiate and enter into bulk contracts to provide wireless and/or fixed broadband internet services for condominium associations and other multi-dwelling unit buildings.
(k) Termination. The Director of Public Service or his/her designee, in their discretion, may terminate, or refuse to provide, service to any customer or location for the following reasons:
(1) Failure to make timely payment of invoices;
(2) One or more violations of any billing or collection policies that may be adopted by the Director of Public Service or his/her designee;
(3) One or more violations of the FairlawnGig Acceptable Use Policy or Digital Millennium Copyright Act Policy;
(4) One or more violations of any section of this chapter;
(5) Failure to sign a written customer agreement;
(6) Breach or violation of any of the terms and conditions of the customer's agreement; or
(7) Destruction, damage or tampering with the City's equipment or other property.
(Ord. 2017-047. Passed 6-19-17; Ord. 2019-004. Passed 2-19-19.)