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The county could also require the cable company to put in such things as two-way cable to the schools and a hook-up to the courthouse so meetings could be televised, Mr. Luke explained.
“This could stop the proliferation of satellite dishes across the county since cable offers a minimum of 36 channels and up to 112,” he said.
However, “there is a joker in the deck,” Mr. Luke added. “The General Assembly has apparently passed a law that says there can be only one cable system per county. It's my understanding that there is already a cable company in Chester Gap. We can require them to abide by a franchise agreement with us,” he added.
“It looks like the General Assembly gave a windfall to the cable companies," Hampton District representative Mike Massie commented.
Mr. Luke said that Culpeper County was also in the process of developing an ordinance and had several cable companies operating in the county without franchise agreements.
He said that Culpeper County’s attorney had suggested that the “next entry into the market would be the telephone and electric companies.” Other companies have to put in wire while these utilities already have wire running to every house, he explained.
Mr. Luke said that the franchise agreements can run for 15 years maximum. “When the franchise expires, if you don’t renew, you’ve got to buy the wares and hardware at fair market value,” he said.
Mr. McCarthy said it would be necessary to look into the new state law to see wThat changes would be required to the proposed ordinance. He said that he estimated it would be ready to advertise for the July board meeting.
The Washington Town Council was approached in March by George Pancner, who is building a cable TV system in Madison. He said he is interested in negotiating to install a system which would serve Washington and possibly the Route 211 corridor west to Sperryville, also including that village. He submitted a copy of the Madison ordinance for the town council to consider. The Council asked attorney Frank Reynolds to look into the matter.
See CATV, p. 16
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