The Village of Roslyn Estates last Monday held a public hearing as part of ongoing negotiations with Cablevision for a new 10-year franchise agreement for cable, internet and phone services.
The board of trustees did not vote on the proposed franchise agreement, as Village of Roslyn Estates Mayor Jeff Schwartzberg said he’d like to first review changes to some areas of the contract that attorney Chris Prior requested be amended for clarity purposes.
Before closing the public hearing, Schwartzberg set another public hearing for the board’s Aug. 12 meeting, during which the board will vote on the agreement.
Cablevision has had franchise agreements within the village for the last three decades. Its most recent deal with Roslyn Estates expired June 30.
Jeff Clark, Cablevision’s director of government affairs who represented the company at the hearing, said the proposed franchise agreement closely resembles the one the village signed with Verizon in 2008.
Both franchise agreements included cable, Internet and phone service, village officials said.
“In order to save a lot of the comparing and back-and-forth on agreements, we’ve taken the Verizon agreement, crossed out Verizon and wrote Cablevision,” Clark said. “They’re not exactly the same, they’re a phone company and we’re a cable company, so there are a few changes.”
Under the proposed agreement, Cablevision would continue to provide free Internet service throughout the village, as it had in the previous agreement, Clark said.
Clark added the village would have access to Cablevision’s Public, Education and Government service.
The service provides residents free access to the necessary equipment and resources to produce a Public Access television program, while schools and governments also have available outlets to produce village programming.
“It’s a major project to take on a government channel, some communities have but you’ve really got to make a commitment to it,” Clark said.
Clark said a number of villages across Long Island have used the government station to televise meetings and relay messages to residents, but added there are other alternatives that would be less time-consuming for officials.
“I’ve had villages, especially with the storms, if you have a message you want to get out, text it to me and we’ll get it on our channels,” Clark said.
The deal also covers services that have been created or expanded since the last agreement, such as digital video recorder and more video on demand options, Clark said.
The board requested a clarification to the contract that states that Cablevision would cover the cost of an outside audit of its performance, should the village request one.
Once voted upon, the contract would be sent for review by the state’s Public Service Commission, and take effect 60-90 days after approval.
