55-86 ORDINANCE NO. 55-86
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA, AUTHORIZING AND GRANTING TO
SOUTHERN BELL TELEPHONE AND TELEGRAPH COMPANY
PERMISSION TO USE THE PUBLIC STREETS OF THE CITY OF
DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA, FOR THE PURPOSE OF ERECTING,
CONSTRUCTING AND MAINTAINING LINES OF TELEPHONE AND
TELEGRAPH THEREON AND THEREUNDER FOR A PERIOD OF TEN
(10) YEARS; SETTING STANDARDS FOR THE PERFORMANCE OF
WORK; PROVIDING FOR A FRANCHISE FEE OF ONE PERCENT
(1%) AND OTHER CONSIDERATION; PROVIDING FOR INDEMNI-
FICATION BY THE COMPANY; PROVIDING THE TERM AND
EXPIRATION DATE; PROVIDING FOR FORFEITURE OF THE
FRANCHISE; PROVIDING FOR REQUIRING CITY COUNCIL
APPROVAL FOR T~NSFER OF RIGHTS UNDER THE FRANCHISE;
PROVIDING FOR LIMITATION OF THE FRANCHISE; PROVIDING
FOR ACCEPTANCE OF THIS ORDINANCE; PROVIDING FOR
POLICE POWERS; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE;
PROVIDING FOR RENEGOTIATION; PROVIDING FOR COPIES;
PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, the City Council' of the City of Delray Beach,
Florida, deems it to be in the best interest of the health, safety, and
welfare of the residents of the City of Delray Beach, Florida, to grant
to Southern Bell Telephone and Telegraph Company a non-exclusive fran-
chise to maintain and operate lines of telephone and telegraph over and
under the public ways of the City of Delray Beach, Florida.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY
OF DELRAY BEACH, FLORIDA, AS FOLLOWS;
~. Scope of non-exclusive franchise..
Permission is hereby granted to Southern Bell'Telephone
and Telegraph Company (hereinafter referred to as the
'Company"), its successors and assigns, subject to the terms
of this ordinance, to have a non-exclusive right to maintain
and operate lines of telephone and telegraph including the
necessary poles, conduits, cables, fixtures and electrical
conducters upon, along, under and over public roads, streets,
alleyways, bridges and highways of the City of Delray Beach,
Florida, in accord with this ordinance as its business may
from time to time require. Nothing in this ordinance shall
exempt any buildings or structures of the Company from compli-
ance with all applicable building and zoning regulations and
ordinances.
~. Standards for the performance of work under the
terms of the non-exclusive franchise.
(a) The work of erecting poles and constructing under-
ground conduits under this ordinance shall be done subject to
the review of the City, and the Company shall replace or
properly relay and repair any sidewalk or street, and relay or
replace any sod or landscaping, which is removed or damaged by
the Company during the work. If the Company fails to make
those repairs after twenty (20) days written notice from the
City Manager, the City may make the repairs to such property
that has been disturbed by the Company and collect the cost of
such repair from the company. Furthermore, the Company in
performing its work shall not displace or disturb any other
individual or entity's utility lines or equipment without the
consent of the City Manager, and shall likewise be responsible
for any damages to such other utility equipment or lines which
it damages. The Company shall also be obligated to coordinate
all construction, repairs, and erecting of poles or instal-
lation of equipment with the City and any other governmental
entities or utilities which may have jurisdiction or provide
services in the vicinity of such activities of the Company and
which may be affected, disrupted or disturbed by such acti-
vities of the Company in order to minimize any adverse
effects, disruption or disturbance.
(b) The Company shall, at its sole expense, place its
facilities underground and shall use underground cable when-
ever reasonably possible, but in any event where required by
other ordinances of the City all new developments shall be
serviced with underground cable unless the Company shall
present evidence to the City which the City deems sufficient
to show that certain technical or geographical conditions make
the use of underground cable impossible o£ ill-advised in a
specific situation. In addition, the Company shall to the
extent reasonably possible maintain all existing underground
lines as underground lines.
(c) Ail fixtures, structures or facilities of the
Company must be placed and maintained, and all wires and
cables secured and elevated so as not to endanger persons or
property or interfere with the use of public rights-of-way,
all at the Company's sole expense. The Company, at the
reasonable direction of the City, shall remove or relocate
poles, cables, conduits or wires or shall change the elevation
of wires as is reasonably necessary to prevent interference
with City work or to avoid interference with the common use of
public rights-of-way as directed by a government agency. The
expense of such removal or relocation shall be at not cost or
risk to the City.
(d) Whenever the Company performs excavations or places
materials upon any rights-of-way it must abide by all appli-
cable regulations regarding use of appropriate barricades
and/or suitable warning signs and lights, all at the Company's
sole expense.
(e) Nothing herein shall exempt the Company from
obtaining permits for any work which requires a permit;
provided that payment for any permits obtained from the City
shall be deducted from consideration paid to the City as set
forth in Section 3, below.
~. Consideration.
(a) In consideration of the permissions~ rights, and
privileges granted by this franchise, the Company shall pay to
the City annually one percent (1%) of the gross receipts from
recurring local service re,~enues of the Company from services
provided within the corporate limits of the City. The one
percent (1%) fee shall include all charges currently permitted
by law to be included in the franchise fee, as such law may be
amended from time to time.
(b) Payment of the franchise fee shall be made annually.
The payment year shall run from the date this ordinance is
adopted by the City Council. The annual payment will be due
each year within sixty (60) days following the annual anni-
versary of the adoption of this franchise ordinance. The
payment due at that time shall be based on the receipts of the
Company for the preceding year. The first payment shall be
made sixty (60) days following the effective date of this
franchise ordinance.
ORD. NO. 55-86
2
The Company shall submit to the City, contemporaneously
with each annual payment, a notarized statement certifying the
annual gross receipts upon which the payment is based. The
acceptance of such payment and statement shall not estop the
City from asserting that the amount paid is not the amount due
or from recovering any deficit by any lawful proceeding. If
the City wishes to verify the payment(s), the Company shall
permit a representative of the City to review the Company
billing records at the Company accounting office where these
records are housed, during normal business hours, given
adequate notice to the Company. The records would not be
duplicated or taken from the Company premise due to the
secrecy of communications regulations and the Privacy Act.
The accounting records shall be maintained by the Company for
the period prescribed by the Federal Communications Commission
and the Public Service Commission.
~. Indemnity. The Company shall hold harmless,
indemnify and defined the City from and against all damages, and claims
which may arise or accrue to the City for any injury to persons or
property from the operation of the Company or any of its employees under
or by the Company's operation or activities arising directly or in-
directly out of this franchise ordinance.
~.gJ~_~. Term and expiration.
(a) This franchise shall expire ten (10) years from the
effective date hereof.
(b) If the franchise expires before a new franchise is
negotiated, the Company shall continue to operate under the
terms of this franchise ordinance unless it receives formal
written notice from the City advising that the franchise with
the Company shall not be renewed or that the current franchise
is cancelled.
~. Forfeiture. Failure of the Company to abide by
the terms of this franchise agreement may result in the forfeiture of
the franchise.
~. Transfer of Rights. The Company may sot transfer
its rights under this'franchise without formal approval by a resolution
of the City Council. No transfer of the franchise rights shall be
effective until the transferee has filed an instrument evidencing the
fact and conditions of the transfer, provides a written statement of
acceptance df the. t~rmu of the franchise by the transferee, and provides.
any other security of performance which the City Council may require.
~. Limitation of the franchise. Nothing in this
franchise grants the Company the right to operate or to provide cable
television service. However, nothing in this section shall be construed
to prevent the Company from carrying a cable television signal across
City rights-of-way for a cable television operator who has a current
franchise agreement with the City of Delray Beach.
~9~. Acceptance. The Company shall file with the Clerk
of the City its acceptance of this ordinance within sixty (60) days from
the date of its passage on second and final reading.
~.~.~_~l. Police powers. Nothing in this ordinance shall be
construed as a surrender or waiver by the City of its police powers or
the right or power to pass ordinances regulating the use of the public
streets and/or other public places.
Section 11. Severability. If anything in this franchise
agreement is determined by a court of competent jurisdiction or a
ORD. NO. 55-86
3 -
regulating agency to be invalid, it shall be determined to be severable
from the remainder of the agreement and shall not invalidate any other
provision of this agreement. However, the City may renegotiate with the
Company the provision which has been determined to be invalid.
~. Renegotiation. The City and the Company further
agree that this franchise shall be subject to renegotiation during the
term hereof upon the express mutual consent in writing of both parties
hereto to such renegotiation.
~. copies. That the City Clerk is hereby authorized
and directed to furnish certified copies of. this ordinance to the
Company and to any and all appropriate regulatory agencies.
~. Effective date. That this ordinance shall become
effective immediately upon its passage on second and final reading.
PASSED AND ADOPTED in regular session on second and final
reading on this the 9th day of September, 198~ .
ATTEST:
it Clerk
First Reading August 26, 1986
Second Reading. September 9, 1986
ORD. NO. 55-86
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