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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2000-204AN ORDINANCE IN ACCORDANCE WITH SECTION 8-31 OF THE CODE OF ORDI- NANCES OF THE CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS, APPROVING AN APPLICATION FORM FOR AN APPLICANT FOR A CABLE TELEVISION FRANCHISE, SETTING A NON- REFUNDABLE APPLICATION FEE FOR THE COSTS OF REVIEW, ISSUANCE, AND ENFORCEMENT OF THE APPLICATION FOR A FRANCHISE, AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE WHEREAS, Section 8-31 of the Code of Ordinances of the City of Denton requires that no cable television franchise may be issued or renewed except upon written application to the City Council on an application form prescribed by the City Council, and WHEREAS, the City has hired a cable television consultant, Charles Gramlich, to assist in the process of preparing the application form, and WHEREAS, Section 8-31 of the Code of Ordinances requires that each applicant must submit a non-refundable application fee, which must be established by the City Council, to cover costs of review, issuance, and enforcement, and WHEREAS, the City Council deems it in the public interest to approve the cable televi- sion franchise application form and to set a non-refundable application fee, NOW, THERE- FORE, THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF DENTON HEREBY ORDAINS S,E TIC ON 1. The attached form entitled "City of Denton, Texas Application for Cable Television Franchise" is hereby prescribed, adopted, and approved as substantially in the terms of the attached form, which is made a part of this ordinance for all purposes, for the use of any cable television franchise applicant, whether seeking a new franchise or the renewal of an exist- ing franchise, in accordance with Section 8-31 of the Code of Ordinances ACTION 2 The City Council hereby establishes a non-refundable application fee for any application for a cable television franchise in the nonrefundable amount of five thousand dollars ($5,000) SECTION 3. The City Manager or his designee is authorized to require that any cable television applicant complete the attached application form and provide all the information re- quired and such other information as the City Council may deem necessary to review the appli- cant's legal, technical, and financial qualifications and its ability to meet the future cable -related needs and interests of the City SECTION 4 This ordinance shall become effective immediately upon its passage and approval PASSED AND APPROVED this the day of 2000 ATTEST JENNIFER WALTERS, CITY SECRETARY BY APPR VED AS O LEGAL FORM HERBERT L PROUTY, CITY ATTORNEY m i EULINE BROCK, MAYOR Page 2 \\CH LGL\VOLI\shamd\dept\LGL\Our Document8\0rdinances\00\cable tv franchise application doc CITY OF DENTON, TEXAS APPLICATION FOR A CABLE TELEVISON FRANCHISE This application form is to be completed by any applicant for an initial cable television franchise or by an existing Grantee requesting renewal of the cable television franchise The City of Denton, Texas ("City") requests that the Applicant complete the following information for its use in reviewing the Apphcarit's legal, technical, and financial qualifications and its ability to meet the future cable -related needs and mterests of the community ty in accordance with Section 8-31 of the City Code All applications received by the City from the applicants for an initial cable television franchise or a renewal will become the sole property of the City The City reserves the right to reject any and all proposals and waive mformahties and/or technicalities where the best interest of the City may be served Before submitting a proposal, each applicant must 1 Examine the application documents thoroughly 2 Familiarize hnnself/herself with local conditions that may in any manner affect performance under the franchise 3 Familiarize himself/herself with federal, state and local laws, ordinances, rules and regulations affecting performance under the franchise, including Chapter 8 of the City Code 4 Carefully correlate the application with the requirements of this procedure and the application documents The City may make such investigations as it deems necessary to determine the ability of the applicant to perform pursuant to the Code of the City, and the applicant shall firrnrsh to the City all such information and data for this purpose as the City may request City staff may request additional information or revise this application form to fit changing circumstances The City reserves the right to reject any application if the evidence submitted by, or investigation of, such applicant fails to satisfy the City that such applicant is properly qualified to carry out the obligations of the Code of the City and to complete the work contemplated therein No cable television franchise will be granted to any applicant unless all requirements and requests of the City regarding the legal, financial and technical qualifications and the plans for the proposed cable television system of the applicant have been met, including compliance with all applicable requirements of the City Code Applicants, including all shareholders and parties with any interest in the applicant, shall submit all requested information as provided by the terms of this procedure or the application documents The requested information must be complete and verified as true by the applicant Applicants, including all shareholders and parties with any interest in the applicant, shall provide the following information regarding other cable systems in which they hold an interest of any nature 1 Locations of all other franchises and the dates of award for each location 2 Estimated construction costs and estimated completion dates for each system 3 Estimated number of miles of construction and number of miles completed in each system as of the date of this apphcation. 4 Date for completion of construction as promised in the application for each system Applicants, including all shareholders and parties with any interest in the applicant, shall provide the City with any documents regarding pending applications for other cable systems, including but not limited to, the following 1 Location of other franchise applications and date of application for each system 2 Estimated dates of franchise awards 3 Estimated number of miles of construction 4 Estimated construction costs LEGAL Contact Please provide the name, address, telephone number, fax number and e-mail address (if available) of the person that the City should contact regarding this applications. 2 Identification of Owners a. If a corporation, state the names and addresses of all officers and directors and the number of shares held by each officer and director Also provide identification and ownership interest for each nominal and beneficial owner of one percent (1%) or more of apphcarit`s issued and outstanding stock If an incorporated association state the names, addresses and outstanding ownership interests of all members and ultimate beneficial owners b if a partnership, provide identification and ownership interest for all general and limited partners c If a propnetorship or other entity, provide full ownership details d If the applicant is a subsidiary, will its parent corporation guarantee the obligations and performance under the franchise? 3 Has the Applicant retained local counsel to represent the company in the renewal process? If so, please identify the firm and indicate which correspondence should be forwarded to them 4 Has the Applicant or any related entity or prmcmpal ever been convicted in a criminal proceeding (felonies or misdemeanors) in which any of the following offenses were charged? YES NO a. Fraud, bnl=y, extortion, embezzlement b Tax evasion Perjury, jury tampering, obstruction of justice, or other misconduct affecting public or judicial officers` performance of their public duties — d False, mislmdmg or deceptive advertising e Anti-trust violations, state or federal — — — f Violations of FCC rules and regulations — g Conspiracy to conmid any of the foregoing offenses — D=smon of Cnormal Cliarees If the answer to any question above is yes, attach a separate statement describing the disposition of each cnmmal charge, mcludmg the date, court, sentence, or fine 5 Is the ApphcarA, or related entity or any pnncipal a party to or has the Applicant, or related entity or any principal ever been a party to a civil proceeding in winch it was held liable for any of the following? YES NO a. Unfair or anti- competitive business practices -- b Anti-trust violations (state and federal) including instances in winch consent decrees were entered — c Violations of securities laws (state and federal) d False, imsleadmg or deceptive advertising — e Violation of FCC rules and regulations Disposmon of Civil Pro If the answer to any question above is yes, attach a separate statement describing the civil proceeding and state the disposition of that case 6 Does the Applicant contend that any provision of the City Charter or Ordinances applicable to the Applicant or the proposed cable system serving the City is or may be unlawful or unenforceable? FINANCIAL The current financial condition of the Applicant is requested in order to have an undento tine of the financial arrangements that may impaet the continuing operations of the proposed cable system. 1 What is the source and amount of equity capital? Is any of the equity capital borrowed? What is the primary source and amount of debt? 4 Provide the name of banks and/or lending institutions and specify the name and title of the bank officer or lending officer who has authorized the financing Please identify the terms of all debt financing. 6 What interest rate? 7 What collateral is involved? Who are the guarantors? 9 Please provide all current financial statements that support financial viability of the proposed cable system's operations. 10 Please provide historical financial statements (audited or reviewed, of available) for the past two years for the Applicant 11 Please supply documentation that assures the proposed the Apphcant's financial viability, such as letters of commitment from financial institutions, winch will demonstrate the availability of sufficient funds to construct, operate and maintain the cable television system in the City 12 Please provide pro forma financial projections for the operation of the proposed cable television system in the City Please include detailed revenue and expense projections and assumptions for the operation of the cable television system serving the City for the next five years Please include a sources and uses of funds 13 The leverage profile of the Applicant ns of concern to the City Please provide information that describes the projected leverage profile of the Applicant and related entities at the end of the next five years Please include the following ratios in your answer total debt per subscriber and total debt per the running rate cash flow 14 Please provide a narrative that discusses the leverage profile of the Applicant and related entities to include a companson of the leverage profile to other multiple yfile em on Operators c�m the, ability if television industry and the operate eatd e� �f � P proposed ale television system ability of the Apphcant to construct, operat in the City. 15 Please provide current financial statements for all owners of five percent (5%) or greater ownership interest in the Applicant. Any other inibmiahon that the Applicant wishes to provide which will help the City develop an accurate picture of the financial condition of the Applicant will be welcomed TECHNICAL This Section includes technical questions relating to the Applicant's proposed cable system. I Describe in detail the geographic area within the City where the Applicant proposes to offer cable television services and a schedule for buildout Indicate the approximate location on a map, or by description, of the fixed system facilities, including tower, satellite earth stations, microwave links The routes of the wires, cables and other facilities 2 If any of the proposed cable television system is to be installed overhead, evidence the surplus space available for locating the proposed cable television system on existing utility poles along the proposed route 3 Does the Applicant intend to interconnect the proposed cable television system with other cable television systems, telecommunications systems or open video systems? 4 Presuming the Applicant obtains a cable television franchise from the City, please describe the types of services the Applicant plans to provide through its cable television system or any other system by answering the following questions a. Does the Applicant plan to offer private, switched telephone services to customers? b. Does the Applicant plan to offer local switched telephone service to City residents either through its own facilities or as a resale camer? c Does the Applicant plan to offer long distance services either through its own facilities or as a resale carrier d Does the Applicant plan to offer customers high-speed data transmission services? e Does the Applicant plan to offer customers Internet access capabilities? f Does the Applicant plan to offer video conferencing services to customers? g Does the Applicant plan to offer any type of video programming service to its customers, including cable television, open video system service, or video dial tone service? h Does the Applicant plan to offer wireless telecommunications services to customers? i Does the Applicant intend to lease or sell transmission capacity on its system to other entities9 If any of the questions above were answered "Yes,' please describe in detail to whom, how and when such services or facilities are planned to be offered 5 Provide a schedule and completion dates for development and construction of the Applicant's proposed cable television system The schedule for buildout should set forth the approximate starting and completion dates of construction of the system and the dates service will actually be available to the areas named 6 Please identify and provide the following niformation regarding the Apphcant's proposed cable television system a. Beginning date of construction of system b Number of downstream channels c Number of upstream channels, discuss and describe any institutional networks and interconnection services d Channel Format (Check one) Standard Carriers Hainwnically Related Carriers Other (please describe e Number of public access channels f Complete fee schedule including subscription fees and other charges g Quality of service measures inchiding Applicant's procedure for handling customer complaints h. Safety measures and safety programs r Hours of Operation. 7 Indicate the anticipated channel capacity of the proposed cable television system Upstream # of video channels # of audio -only channels # of data channels # of voice channels # of video channels # of audio -only channels # of data channels # of voice channels 8 System Design a. What are the system's design parameters b What is the longest trunk amplifier cascade9 c How many line extenders in cascade? d What are the projected worst -case distortion characteristics? 9 Has the Applicant ever had a business license, mcludmg a license obtained from the FCC revoked, suspended or the renewal thereof denied, or is the Applicant a party to proceedings that will result in the same9 10 Has the Applicant ever, as the result of an adjudicated proceeding, been found in violation (other than routine service complaints) of any franchise ordinance or agreement, contract or regulation governing a cable television system owned or operated by it? 11 Has the Applicant ever initiated litigation against a franchising authority or has a franchising authority initiated litigation against it? If so, identify the franchising authority involved, the court or administrative agency in which that litigation was docketed, the nature of the controversy that was the source of the litigation, the disposition or result of that litigation, and any other relevant facts 12 Has the Applicant been cited by any franchismg authority for not meeting the Federal Customer Service Standards or Customer Service Standards set out in any local franchise agreement or ordinance? Any other information that the Applicant wishes to provide which will help us develop an accurate picture of the technical condition of the operation will be welcomed Applicant must submit with the completed apphcation a non-refundable application fee in the amount of $ to cover the costs of review, issuance and enforcement of the proposed franchise I certify that I am authorized to execute this Application on behalf of the Applicant I further understand that if there are material omissions of information requested by this Application or deliberately false answers given to questions on this Application, the City of Denton, Texas, may revoke any franchise, permit or license it has granted in reliance on the answers provided by Applicant to this Application Date Name of Applicant L-a Notary Signature Line