(1) The mayor and council find that the city's rights-of-way constitute valuable public property,
(a) Having been acquired and maintained by the city over many years at taxpayer expense;
(b) Being capable of providing rights-of-way uniquely valuable to private companies for providing cable services;
(c) Constituting public investments for which the taxpayers are entitled to a fair monetary return on the city's past and future investment in the city's infrastructure; and
(d) Comprising significant assets which should be managed fairly and appropriately to enhance the public safety and economy.
(2) Therefore, this chapter is intended:
(a) To regulate the erection, construction, reconstruction, installation, operation, maintenance, dismantling, testing, repair and use of the cable system in, upon, along, across, above, over or under or in any manner connected with the rights-of-way, public ways or public places within the jurisdiction of the city, as now or in the future may exist;
(b) To provide for the payment of certain fees and other valuable considerations to the city to regulate the construction and operation, use and development of the cable system within the city;
(c) To provide conditions under which the cable system will serve present and future needs of government, public institutions, commercial enterprises, lawful public and private organizations, and the citizens and general public of the city;
(d) To provide remedies and prescribe penalties for violations of this chapter;
(e) To permit and manage reasonable access to the public ways of the city for cable purposes on a competitively neutral basis;
(f) To conserve the limited physical capacity of the rights-of-way held in the public trust by the city;
(g) To assure that the city's current and ongoing costs of granting and regulating private access to and use of the rights-of-way are fully paid by the persons seeking such access and causing such costs;
(h) To secure fair and reasonable compensation to the city and the residents of the city for permitting private use of the rights-of-way;
(i) To assure that all cable companies providing facilities or services within the city comply with the ordinances, rules, and regulations of the city;
(j) To assure that the city can continue to fairly and responsibly protect the public health, safety, and welfare;
(k) To enable the city to discharge its public trust consistent with rapidly evolving federal and state regulatory policies, industry competition, and technological development.
(Ord. No. 8937, § 2, 9-2-97)