December 21, 1999
Time passing for cable franchise agreement
By Erik Burriss
Staff Writer
If cable TV is interrupted in Tiffin, subscribers might have Father Time to blame -- as in Time-Warner, not Y2K.
The city's negotiations with Time-Warner for a franchise agreement have been on pause. City Council's Monday night meeting was preceded by meetings of the Utilities and Related Services Committee and Personnel and Labor Relations Committee.
The Utilities and Labor Relations Committee discussed the ongoing negotiations with Time-Warner, which have lasted two years and cost the city $17,000 in attorney's fees, Chairman Paul Elchert said.
City Administrator Wayne Stephens said John Gibbon, the city's representative, is not convinced that Time-Warner's negotiators have the authority to make a decision. Gibbon feels that if Time-Warner does not come up with an acceptable proposal, the city's next step is to not renew the cable franchise, Stephens said, an action which may bring Time-Warner's "higher-ups" into the negotiations.
First Ward Councilman Dale Depew expressed concern that if the city does not renew the agreement, residents may be left without cable service.
Stephens said the main hangup in negotiations is the company's refusal to agree to set up a computer network linking the city's institutions via cable. Another sticking point is the inclusion of a clause prohibiting Time-Warner from transferring ownership of the cable franchise, a right which Stephens said is protected by federal law.
"I'd just as soon start the process of getting rid of Time-Warner," Stephens said, because of the company's poor customer service and their discontinuation of channels.
"Our citizens deserve the same services as other cities," 4th Ward Councilman Michael Grandillo said.
The Personnel and Labor Relations Committee met to discuss a bonus for City Forester Lowell Hetzel since Hetzel has become a certified arborist.
"It's not something you come by easily," Stephens said. "You have to have extensive knowledge in the field."
The committee voted 3-0 to recommend a bonus of up to 35-cents-an-hour for Hetzel.
"Certification makes him far more valuable to other cities and far more valuable to us," At large Councilwoman Wilma Klopp said.