Verizon, which already provides Internet and voice services, will be the city’s second cable provider.
By Jonathan Friedman / Assistant Editor
There is a new player in the Malibu cable market. The City Council on Monday voted to approve a franchise agreement with Verizon California Inc. for it to become Malibu’s second cable provider. Prior to that approval, Charter Communications was the only cable company in the city.
Verizon’s cable service will not be ready immediately. The company is currently completing the installation of a Fiber to the Premises, or FTTP, network in Malibu to advance its existing telephone and high-speed Internet services. And the network will also be able to provide cable television for residents.
Like Charter does now, Verizon will offer Malibu channels on its cable system. A Verizon official said there will be three channels; one for government, one for education and a third for public access. A fourth channel could be made available if it were determined it were necessary. This led to some amount of questioning by the City Council members who wanted assurance that they could get the fourth channel, because several of them wanted one devoted to the arts. The Verizon official said that could be done if the other three channels were being used for at least eight hours of unrepeated daily programming.
The Verizon agreement is for 15 years. The company can back out of the deal after three years. Charter’s agreement is up for renewal next year.
Meanwhile, a bill was recently approved by the state Assembly and will soon go before the state Senate to create state cable franchises. Assistant City Attorney Bradley E. Wohlenberg said this would not override Malibu’s franchise with Verizon. But Malibu would have to join the state franchise system after the Verizon agreement expires if the bill passes. There is also a bill going through the federal government that would create federal cable franchises.
New economic plan in the works
Also at Monday’s meeting, the council approved an $83,500 agreement with Applied Development Economics to help create an economic plan for the city of Malibu. Applied Development prepared an economic plan for the city in 2000, but it was never implemented for reasons that are disputed. The development of a new one will be monitored by the city’s planning staff and the Economic Advisory Committee. The city’s General Plan requires the creation of an Economic Element.
Additionally, the council decided not to vote on a new agreement with the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District for the city to use district facilities during non-school hours. SMMUSD Vice President Kathy Wisnicki suggested the item be taken off the agenda and a vote not be taken until September because she and other district officials had not had time to review it. Although some district officials had met with city staff to work out the agreement, Wisnicki said many from the district had not seen it because of the transition process the SMMUSD had been going through.
Wisnicki said she was surprised to see the amount of money the city would be paying for the use of the fields was being reduced to $92,695, nearly a quarter less than what the city had previously paid. Wisnicki also hinted at the possibility that the district might be interested in making some of its vacant land available for the creation of ball fields for the city. She said that was something that could be discussed.