§ 24-200. Policy and purposes.

(1)

Policy. It shall be the policy of the governing authority of the City of Tupelo by application of this article to advance telecommunications services by encouraging competition among telecommunications providers to establish affordable rates and increased service options for local consumers, and to protect the public interest and existing utility service facilities by regulating the access to and use of streets, alleys, rights-of-way and other properties that are owned or dedicated by the city for municipal or public use.

(2)

General purpose. The general purpose of this article is to enable the city to exercise its historical rights, subject to limitations of state and federal law, to manage and control its public and city owned streets, alleys, rights-of-ways and other public and city-owned property in the municipality, and to require fair and reasonable compensation for such access by telecommunications service providers.

(3)

Objectives. The objectives of this article are:

(a)

To allow the city:

1.

To preserve the physical integrity of its public and municipal streets, alleys, rights-of-way and public or city-owned properties;

2.

To control the orderly flow of vehicles and pedestrians;

3.

To manage and coordinate telephone, data, and telegraph cable and facilities in conjunction with other public utility facilities of various kinds located on, under, over, and crossing streets, alleys, rights-of-way, and properties owned or dedicated by the city for municipal or public use;

4.

To coordinate construction schedules and require procedures for trenching, street cuts, and repairs required thereby;

5.

To determine insurance, bonding and indemnity requirements;

6.

To establish and enforce building codes when applicable to facility improvements in rights-of-way; and

7.

To keep track of the various systems using the rights-of-way to prevent interference between them;

(b)

To establish a uniform method for requiring telecommunications providers to compensate the city on a competitively neutral and nondiscriminatory basis for use of city and public rights-of-way and properties; and

(c)

To encourage competition in the provision of telecommunications services by use of city and public rights-of-way and properties by telecommunications service providers without a competitive advantage or disadvantage among providers in their ability to obtain the use thereof.

(Ord. of 10-21-14)