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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/14/1998 � � Telecommunications Advisory Committee City of Apple Valley September 14, 1998 7:00 P.M. City Hall Minutes 1. Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 7:00 p.m. by Chairperson Bible. Members Present: Dale Rodell, Rollin Bible, Jerry Brown, John Magnusson Members Absent: Scott Hugstad-Vaa, David Westbrook Others Present: Charles Grawe, Dennis LaComb, John Erar, Gary Humphrey (arrived at 8:00 p.m.), Thomas Creighton, Rob Roeder, Carol Wold-Sindt 2. A��roval of Minutes The minutes of June 8, 1998 were approved unanimous. Motion by Mr. Rodell, second by Mr. Brown. 3. She�herd of the Valle,y Church Comments on Public Access Mr. Grawe said he met with Pastor Paetznick of Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church. Mr. Grawe explained the church currently video tapes sermons, edits several sermons together, and plays edited program on public access. Mr. Grawe said he explained to Pastor Paetznick the City's desire to continue public access in a manner that is generally similar to the end user. In that respect, the only practical change to the church would likely be bringing video tapes to a City building rather than the Marcus building. Mr. Grawe added that the editing work currently performed by Dan Davies for the church would likely have to be done by church volunteers. There was no dissent from the Committee regarding Mr. Grawe's characterization of the City's intentions for the future provision of public access. 4. Franchise Renewal U�date Mr. Creighton gave a report on the franchise renewal progress. He said he was waiting on the Lake Minnetonka franchise to settle, which could save the City some money. However, after a significant delay in the Lake Minnetonka settlement, he went forward with an Apple Valley, Farmington, Rosemount franchise. The Apple Valley franchise is a hybrid based on the Lake Minnetonka franchise. The Marcus attorney, Jane Bremer, is on vacation until September 30 and has received, but not read the franchise document. • • Mr. Creighton also sent a letter to Ms. Bremer which serves as a summary on progress with the franchise issues. Mr. Creighton said he received a near-final copy of the Lakeville franchise and will review it for consistency with the Apple Valley franchise. Mr. Creighton said most negotiations to this point have been over the phone and have narrowed the discussions to four sticking points--two dealing with non-compliance and two dealing directly with renewal. Mr. Creighton spoke with Ms. Bremer prior to sending letters of non-compliance. Ms. Bremer requested he delay the letters, since doing so would likely result in additional delays to the renewal as new representatives from the company would come into the discussion. Mr. Creighton said none of the Cities' rights are waived by delaying the letter and the issue is essentially being held in abeyance. Mr. Creighton said the first issue involved Marcus customer service representatives who told customers angry over the rate increase to complain to the cities. Mr. Roeder said there had been miscommunication with the customer service representatives and the problem was resolved. Mr. Creighton said the second issue involved Marcus arbitrarily moving the City's access channel from channe121 to channel 16 without permission. Mr. Creighton noted the city councils can still send notices of violation on these issues. Mr. Creighton said that Marcus just issued federal Form 394 for approval of the change in ownership. This begins a 120 day period in which the cities must address the forms. He said he is also concerned that the sale of Marcus to Paul Allen did not include sale of Marcus Fiberlink. He noted the renewal process was working in tandem with negotiations with Fiberlink for an institutional network. .This could be in jeopardy if ownership of Marcus and Fiberlink is separated. Mr. Creighton also noted all future communications about the franchise will be in writing. Mr. Bible asked if this was good progress on the franchise. Mr. Creighton said he thinks progress was made, but more progress will follow with written negotiations. He also noted great progress was made on the ordinance and the "boiler plate" language. Mr. Erar expressed frustration with the slow progress and wanted to know what still remain to be done. Mr. Creighton explained the delay of the Lakeville franchise has been a major factor in the slowed progress. Mr. Creighton said the cities could try to fine Marcus for the franchise violations, but would likely cause a negative response to progress on the renewal. Ms. Wold-Sindt said she expects better progress in the near future now that the transfer of ownership is complete. She said the attorneys can expect better response times from the Marcus corporate offices with the sale of the system completed. Mr. Creighton added the new ownership of Charter Communications will approve all new franchise renewals. Mr. Creighton said he has worked with the lead attorney from Charter and Ms. Bremer has a close working relationship with Charter. He said part of the delay was due to corporate decisions within Marcus to refuse to negotiate issues until the sale was completed. Ms. Wold-Sindt said her firm will represent both Marcus and Charter during the renewal negotiations. Mr. Creighton said he and Ms. Bremer will meet when she returns and believes setting reporting deadlines is a good idea. Mr. Bible said he still has concerns with the PEG fee � � portion of the franchise. Mr. Erar asked when the joint powers agreement would be completed. Mr. Creighton said he will work on the joint powers agreement. Mr. Bible asked what the new corporate mentality is like for Marcus. Mr. Roeder responded there is a new regional manager. While the company name is currently Marcus, he expects a change in the near future. His goal is to do business as usual, only better, to impress the new ownership. He noted the budget process is similar to the previous management except mare money is available. He also noticed much greater management support over the past 30 days. Mr. Creighton said he will be meeting with representatives from Burnsville to discuss an interconnect. Mr. Bible said he doesn't expect clarification on the PEG fee until after November. Mr. Erar said Farmington and Rosemount don't have that issue. He said the issues he wants resolved are the joint powers agreement, capital grant funding outside of the PEG fee, and use of the fiber optic bandwidth. Ms. Wold-Sindt said the cities should copy the Lakeville agreement with Fiberlink. Mr. Erar said he is also concerned about the high level of customer service complaints. Mr. Creighton recommended the cities file a form with the FCC to investigate the rate increases. Mr. Roeder said the rate increase reflects an additional 13 channels added to the showcase package, as well as cost increases passed down by cable networks. There was brief discussion about the pricing of satellite cable services. Mr. Bible asked if the Committee wanted to file the form. Mr. Roeder said he has made significant changes to improve customer service over the passed 60 days, and expects more improvements in the next 60 days. There was general consensus to monitor Marcus' customer service improvements over the next 60 days. Mr. Bible set the next meeting for Tuesday, October 13, at 7:00 p.m.. 5. 3rd Ouarter Com�laint Log There was brief discussion about the complaint log. There was consensus to monitor Marcus' efforts to improve customer service over the next 60 days. 6. Adjourn Mr. Rodell moved, seconded by Mr. Magnusson to adjourn the meeting. Motion carried unanimous. The meeting was adjourned at 8:25 P.M..