(a) Scope. The purpose and intent of this chapter is to:
(1) Manage occupancy or use of the public right-of-way by service providers on competitively neutral basis;
(2) Conserve the limited physical capacity of the public right-of-way held in trust by the Village for the benefit of the public;
(3) Administer the impact of access to the public right-of-way by service providers to promote efficiency, discourage uneconomic duplication of facilities, and lessen the public inconvenience arising out of uncoordinated work in the public right-of-way;
(4) Promote cooperation among service providers and the Village in the use and occupation of the public right-of-way, to minimize public inconvenience during work in the public right-of-way, and to eliminate wasteful, unnecessary or unsightly duplication of facilities;
(5) Assure that the Village fairly and responsibly protects the public health, safety and welfare;
(6) Abate the public nuisance specifically determined to exist by the Village and created by the unregulated placement of above ground facilities and above ground facilities clusters in the public right-of-way that interfere with the safe and unobstructed use of the public right-of-way by traffic, pedestrians and adjoining and abutting property owners;
(7) Enable the Village to discharge its public trust consistent with rapidly evolving federal and State regulatory policies, industry competition and technological development; and
(8) Manage, regulate and administer the public right-of-way in the Village with regard to matters of local concern in the exercise of the Village's powers of local self-government granted by the Ohio Revised Code.
(b) Definitions: For the purpose, interpretation and enforcement of this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the following meanings, unless the context of the sentence in which they are used shall indicate otherwise:
(1) "Above Ground Facilities" or "AGF" means that portion of a System located on and up to eight (8) feet above the surface of the public right-of-way outside of the public street but excluding Overhead Facilities.
(2) "Above Ground Facilities Cluster" or "AGF Cluster" means a grouping of more than one (1) structure constituting Above Ground Facilities of a Service Provider on a shared concrete pad.
(3) "Above Ground Facilities Installation Permit" or "AGF Installation Permit" means a permit issued under Section 910.06
of this chapter.
(4) "Administrator" means the Village Administrator or the Administrator's designee.
(5) "Affiliate" means a Person that (directly or indirectly) owns or controls, is owned or controlled by, or is under common ownership or control with another Person.
(6) "Capital Improvement" means an addition made to enhance the value or extend the useful life of an existing System or Facilities, including Construction, Reconstruction, installation, rehabilitation, renovation, improvement, enlargement and extension of Facilities, but not including Ordinary Maintenance and New Service Connections.
(7) "Clerk-Treasurer" means the Clerk-Treasurer of the Village of Sheffield.
(8) "Construct," "Constructing" or "Construction" means installing, repairing, replacing or removing any Facility, regardless of the methods employed, but not including Ordinary Maintenance.
(9) "Excavate," "Excavating" or "Excavation" means cutting, sawing, breaking, drilling into, boring under, or otherwise altering any Public Street or sidewalk pavement, and/or digging, drilling into or boring under any unpaved portion of the public right-of-way, including any other work or activity which disturbs the existing surface or subsurface structure, composition, or soil compaction, for the purpose of carrying on any Construction activity.
(10) "Excess Capacity" means the volume or capacity in any existing or future duct, conduit, manhole, or other Facility in the public right-of-way that is or will be available for use for additional Facilities as determined by the owner of the Facility.
(11) "Facilities" or "Facility" means the plant, equipment and property, including but not limited to, cables, fibers, wires, pipes, conduits, ducts, pedestals, antennae, electronics, poles, pipes, mains, plant, equipment and other appurtenances located under, on or above the surface of the ground in the public right-of-way of the Village and used or to be used to operate a System to transmit, receive, distribute, provide or offer a Service.
(12) "Location and Design Manual" or "L&D Manual" means the Location and Design Manual promulgated by the Ohio Department of Transportation, as it may be updated or revised from time to time.
(13) "New Service Connections" means the physical connection made between a Service Provider's Facilities in the public right-of-way and private property for the purpose of providing new Service to a customer.
(14) "Occupancy," "Occupy" or "Use" means, with respect to the public right-of-way, to place a tangible thing in the public right-of-way for any purpose, including, but not limited to, constructing, repairing, positioning, maintaining or operating lines, poles, pipes, conduits, ducts, equipment or other structures, appurtenances or facilities necessary to operate a system for the delivery of services.
(15) "Ordinary Maintenance" means
A. Construction commonly accomplished in or on an existing facility for the purpose of preventing deterioration or performance deficiencies, maintaining appearance, or securing original level of performance; or
B. Repair, upkeep, replacement or restoration of existing facilities located in the public right-of-way that does not include excavation of the public right-of-way and does not alter the size of the cabinet surrounding the existing facilities.
(16) “Other Ways" means the highways, streets, alleys, utility easements or other right-of-way within the Village, but under the jurisdiction and control of a governmental entity other than the Village.
(17) "Overhead Facilities" means utility poles that extend more than eight (8) feet above the surface of the public right-of-way and wires, cables and other equipment running between and on the poles more than eight (8) feet above the surface of the public right-of- way including the underground supports and foundations for the facilities.
(18) "Person" means and includes corporations, companies, associations, joint stock companies or associations, firms, partnerships, limited liability companies, trusts and individuals and includes their lessors, trustees and receivers.
(19) "Private Service Provider" means any person who directly or indirectly owns, controls, operates or manages facilities within the public right-of-way used or to be used for the purpose of operating a system to transmit, receive, distribute or provide services between or among private buildings or facilities where there is no offer of service to the public.
(20) "Public Easement" means any easement under the jurisdiction and control of the Village and acquired, established, dedicated or devoted for public purposes, including utility purposes.
(21) "Public Property" means any real and personal property owned or controlled by the Village, other than the public right-of-way.
(22) "Public Right-of-Way" means the surface of, and the space within, through, on, across, above or below, the paved or unpaved portion of any public street, public road, public highway, public freeway, public lane, public path, public alley, public court, public sidewalk, public boulevard, public parkway, public drive, public easement and any other land dedicated or otherwise designated for a compatible public use, which is controlled by the Village but excludes public property and private easements.
(23) "Public Service Provider" means any person that directly or indirectly owns, controls, operates or manages facilities within the Village's public right-of-way, used or to be used for the purpose of operating a System offering service to the public within the Village or outside its boundaries.
(24) "Public Street" means the paved portion of any street, road, boulevard, drive, highway, freeway, parkway, lane court, alley or other public right-of-way in which the Village has an interest in law or equity and which has been acquired, established, dedicated or devoted to street purposes, including curb lawns, amenity areas, and sidewalks.
(25) "PUCO" or "Public Utilities Commission of Ohio" means the state administrative agency, or lawful successor, authorized to regulate and oversee certain public or private service providers and services in the state.
(26) "Reconstruct" or "Reconstruction" means substantial physical change to or capital improvement of all or a portion of an existing system or facilities including a change in location, or additional locations, of facilities along the same right-of-way involving construction in public streets, utility easements, or public right-of-way.
(27) "Regulated Service Provider" means a service provider operating under a tariff from the PUCO or a service provider owned by a political subdivision of the State.
(28) "Service" means the offering of water, sewer, electric, gas, telephone, telecommunications, cable television, video service, information or other utility-like service for a fee directly to the public, or to the classes of users as to be effectively available to the public, regardless of the facilities used.
(29) "Service Provider" means any public service provider and/or private service provider.
(30) "State" means the State of Ohio.
(31) "Surplus Overhead Space" means that portion of the usable overhead space on a utility pole that is or will be available for use by other service providers as determined by the owner of the pole, and which has the necessary clearance from the facilities of existing service providers using the pole, as required by the orders and regulations of PUCO and other applicable state and local orders or other applicable codes or regulations, to allow its use by a service provider for a pole attachment.
(32) "Surplus Underground Space" means that portion of the usable underground space which has the necessary clearance from the underground facilities of existing service providers as determined by the Administrator in accordance with applicable codes and regulations to allow its use for additional underground facilities by a service provider.
(33) "System" means a network of facilities for the transmission and/or distribution of a service.
(34) "Underground Facilities" means that portion of a system located under the surface of the ground, excluding the underground foundations or supports for overhead facilities.
(35) “Usable Overhead Space" means the total distance between the top of a utility pole and the lowest possible attachment point that provides the minimum allowable vertical clearance as specified in the orders and regulations of the PUCO or other applicable codes or regulations.
(36) "Usable Underground Space" means the space below the surface of the public right-of-way that is needed for the installation and maintenance of underground facilities by a service provider without interfering with occupancy of existing underground facilities by service providers in the public right-of-way as determined by the Administrator in accordance with applicable codes and regulations.
(37) "Utility Easement" means any easement owned by a service provider and acquired, established, dedicated or devoted for the purpose of providing service to the public.
(38) "Video Service" means the provision of video programming using equipment located at least in part in the public right-of-way, regardless of the technology used to deliver that programming.
(39) "Village" means Sheffield Village, Ohio.
(40) "Village Property" means and includes all real property owned by the Village, other than Public Streets and Public Easements as those terms are defined in this section, and all property held in a proprietary capacity by the Village. (Ord. 2545. Passed 9-26-16.)