903.02 RIGHTS OF WAY ADMINISTRATION.
The Safety Service Director shall be the principal City official responsible for the administration of this Chapter except as otherwise provided herein. The Safety Service Director may delegate any or all of the duties hereunder to a designee of his or her choice.
Each Person who occupies, uses, or seeks to occupy or use the Rights of Way to operate a System located in the Rights of Way, or who has or seeks to have, a System located in any Rights of Way, unless specifically exempted by O.R.C. 4939.02(D), shall apply for and obtain a Certificate of Registration pursuant to this Chapter. Any Person owning, operating or maintaining a System without a Certificate of Registration, including Persons operating under a permit, license or franchise issued by the City prior to the effective date of this Chapter, shall apply for and obtain a Certificate of Registration from the City within Six (6) months from the effective date of this Chapter, unless exempted by Section 903.02.4
. Applications will consist of providing the application information set forth in Section 903.06
et seq. and as reasonably required by the Mayor.
Following the effective date of this Chapter, no Person shall Construct or perform any work, or use any System or any part thereof, located in, on, above, within, over, below, under, or through any Rights of Way without first obtaining a Certificate of Registration. For the purposes of this Section only, a Person with a System in place at the time of the effective date of this Chapter shall not be considered immediately in violation of this Section, but shall have up to six (6) months from the effective date of this Chapter to obtain a Certificate of Registration.
The following entities are not obligated to obtain a Certificate of Registration: the City; the City; the County; cable television operators for the limited purpose of providing only cable television service and operating pursuant to a valid cable television franchise; resellers of Services that do not own any System or Facilities in the Rights of Way; a Person that possesses a valid Service Agreement (such exception for a Service Agreement shall only be for the limited specific purpose and term provided for in the Service Agreement document); any business entity which has established, prior to the effective date of the Federal Telecommunications Act of 1996, a proper installation and maintenance of facilities in the right of way, has provided essential services to residences and businesses in the City, has demonstrated a reasonable level of responsibility working within the right of way, and has located substantial facilities within the right of way, and has provided benefits to the citizens and businesses of the City including any of the following: utility poles to be used by other service providers, use of excess capacity and conduit, maintenance of existing infrastructure and the identification of and location of existing facilities within the right of way.
Beginning one year after the effective date of this Chapter, any System or part of a System found in a Rights of Way for which a Certificate of Registration has not been obtained, unless specifically exempted by O.R.C. 4939.02(D) shall be deemed to be/a nuisance and an unauthorized use of the Rights of Way. The City may exercise any remedies or rights it has at Law or in equity, including, but not limited to abating the nuisance; taking possession of the Facilities and/or non-complying portion of such System; and/or prosecuting the violator.
In allowing Facilities to be placed in the Rights of Way, the City is not liable for any damages caused th¢reby to any Provider's Facilities that are already in place. No Provider is entitled to rely on the frovisions of this Chapter as creating a special duty to any Provider. (Ord. 2001-49-E. Passed 8-28-01.)