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He pointed out that his motion would extend only to service within the town, and not to Centel’s service outside the town's limits.
Diane Bruce, the county’s cleric and a long-time resident of the town, replied, “You think it’s bad now — you should have seen it before. We finally got the State Corporation Commission involved and the company put another access line in.” The complaint, she said, was based on the need of the town’s residents for immediate access to fire and rescue services.
“One of the problems,” she added, “is that there’s no profit in residential telephone service. Nobody wants us.”
“That’s the bottom line,” Mayor Morehouse agreed.
Fran Eldned pointed out the limited local dialing area, which means that customers in the town must pay a toll charge to reach every nearby town, unlike C & P customers elsewhere in the county. Centel offers such a service, Mrs. Eldred said, “for a slight additional charge.” People, she stated, “are not willing to pay for something which they should get for free.”
In other words, Treasurer Brad Fisher added, “For a basic price you can get a car that doesn’t work, or for a little more you can get one that runs.”
Ms. Bruce pointed out that the previous Town Council had signed a 25-year franchise agreement with Centel. And, she added, it required only a $1,000 franchise bond, while any competing company would have to post a $50,000 bond. “We tried to get the renewal only if they would bury the lines; we tried to get the franchise year-to-year — bit the
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