BY SHERRY CONOHAN
Staff Writer
LITTLE SILVER — The Borough Council voted to renew its cable television franchise with Comcast for 15 years and a representative of the company said he would do what he can to get equipment promised as part of the deal for Red Bank Regional High School over to the school as soon as possible.
The contract the council approved provides that Red Bank Regional will get a television studio, compliments of Comcast, if Red Bank and Shrewsbury go along with Little Silver in renewing their franchises with the cable company for 15 years instead of 10 years.
The proposal from Comcast includes channel access for the high school.
Councilman Jonathan H. Bitman said earlier that Red Bank, which is close to renewing, had indicated its willingness to go along with the 15-year term. But Shrewsbury officials have pointed out their franchise doesn’t expire until 2005 and they have only just started the long process leading to renewal.
Peter J. Lyden III, senior director of franchise and government affairs for the New Jersey region of Comcast, observed that the proposal presented to the three municipalities that feed into Red Bank Regional specifies a different level of contribution by Comcast of equipment for a TV studio, depending on whether they commit for 10 or 15 years. He said if Red Bank comes in at 15 years he would make an appeal to his company to start moving on the purchase of equipment now without waiting for Shrewsbury.
"I don’t know if I can get it, but I will try," he said. "I’m going to speak to the school over the next few months and tell them what I will provide."
Lyden said he had had a meeting with the Shrewsbury Borough Council’s franchise renewal committee. Asked how it went, he replied, "We had a good meeting."
Lyden said either he or one of his counterparts at Comcast will go to a Shrewsbury council meeting early next year to discuss the upcoming renewal.
Little Silver Borough Business Administrator Michael D. Biehl said if all three municipalities go along with the 15-year term, Comcast will provide a one-time grant with a value of $70,000 for the TV studio and channel access.
The contract specifies that if all three municipalities adopt a term of 10 years for their franchise renewal, Comcast will give Red Bank Regional a one-time grant of $30,000 for television production equipment.
If all three municipalities adopt a term of 15 years, the grant will be $50,000 for television production equipment, plus Comcast will construct and maintain, at its own expense, a dedicated return from the high school to the company’s head end. It also will provide all equipment necessary for the transmission of a cable television signal from the high school to the company’s head and from there to cable television subscribers in the three municipalities on a dedicated governmental/educational access channel to be maintained by Comcast.
Biehl said the borough also gets a new benefit from Comcast with the franchise renewal — Internet access for the municipal offices.
The contract the council approved specifies that Comcast will provide the borough a one-time grant for cable- and technology-related needs in the amount of $20,000. Biehl said the borough was taking it in kind.
Comcast also agreed to continue to provide residents with a system-wide public access channel maintained by the company.
The contract provides that Comcast will pay to the borough 2 percent of the gross revenues from all recurring charges in the nature of subscription fees paid by subscribers for cable television reception.
Comcast’s franchise applies to the entire borough, under the contract.
In a public hearing before adopting the ordinance, 4-0, the council heard one complaint about Comcast from Bruce Hanson, of Markham Place, related to his high speed Internet service. He said most of the time it works but sometimes it can be a "nightmare." He wanted to make sure Comcast provides the borough with the capacity necessary to properly serve all its customers.
"I really like it," he said. "It drives me crazy when it doesn’t work right."
Biehl said after the meeting that, strictly speaking, that really isn’t part of the cable television contract.
Earlier the council introduced a pair of ordinances changing the recently adopted restrictions on parking on Little Silver Point Road across Seven Bridges Road from Point Road School. One of the ordinances prohibits parking on the south side of Little Silver Point Road for a distance of 160 feet from Seven Bridges Road. The other ordinance prohibits parking on the south side of Little Silver point Road for another 240 feet towards the east from 2 to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, for a total distance of 400 feet during those hours. A public hearing on both ordinances is scheduled for Dec. 1.
Biehl said the earlier restriction was changed because it made the no parking area applicable 24 hours a day all year-round for the entire 400 foot distance, which would have kept a resident from ever parking in front of his house, when it was aimed at keeping the road passable near the intersection during the hours when parents pick up their children from school and park on Little Silver Point Road while waiting for them.