§ 118-80. Removal of the system.

Upon expiration or termination of the franchise, subject to the provisions of Section 626 of the Act or other applicable Federal law, franchisee shall, upon notice from the Board to remove the cable system facilities from the County, discontinue the provision of cable services and all rights of the franchisee to use the public ways shall cease.

(1)

The Board may, in its sole discretion, but shall not be obligated to, direct the franchisee to remove, at the franchisee's sole cost and expense, all or any portion of the system from all public ways and other public property within the franchise area, subject to the following:

a.

This provision shall not apply to buried cable which the Board determines should not be removed;

b.

In removing the system, or part thereof, the franchisee shall refill and compact, at its own expense, any excavation that shall be made by it and shall leave all public ways and other property in as good condition as that prevailing prior to the franchisee's removal of the system and without affecting, altering or disturbing in any way any electric, telephone or other utility cables, wires or attachments (except to the extent such affecting, altering or disturbing is permitted by an agreement between the franchisee and the applicable utility);

c.

The Board shall have the right to inspect and approve the condition of such public ways and public property after removal;

d.

The liability insurance and indemnity provisions of the franchise agreement shall remain in full force and effect during the entire period of removal and associated repair of all public ways and other public property;

e.

Removal shall be commenced within 30 days of the removal order by the County and shall be completed within 12 months thereafter, including all associated repair of all public ways and other public property;

f.

If, in the reasonable judgment of the Board, the franchisee fails to substantially complete such removal, including all associated repair of public ways and other public property, within 12 months thereafter, then, to the extent not inconsistent with applicable law, the Board shall have the right to: (i) declare that all rights, title and interest to the system ordered by the board to be removed, located in the public ways or on public property, shall belong to and become the property of the County without compensation to franchisee with all rights of ownership, including, but not limited to, the right to operate the system or to effect a transfer of such portion of the system to another person for operation; or (ii) authorize removal of that portion of the system, at the franchisee's cost, by another person; and (iii) to the extent not inconsistent with applicable law, any portion of the system not designated by the Board for removal shall belong to and become the property of the County without compensation to the franchisee and the franchisee shall execute and deliver such documents as the County shall request, in form and substance acceptable to the County, to evidence such ownership by the County.

(2)

Disposal outside 12-month period. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the franchisee may dispose of any portion of the system not designated by the board for removal during such 12-month period, provided, however, that if the franchisee fails to complete the removal of the portion(s) of the system designated for removal by the Board within such period, then all such portion(s) of the system not disposed of and all amounts collected for any portion(s) of the system disposed of by the franchisee during such period shall belong to the Board, with no price due to the franchisee.

(3)

Applicability. This section shall not apply to those cable system facilities that remain in use by franchisee to provide services other than cable service.

(Ord. No. 2006-026, § 12, 4-12-2006)