Ord. 0002 1960-01-08AN ORDINANCE GRANTING TO HOUSTON LIGHTING & POWER
COMPANY, ITS SUCCESSORS AND ASSIGNS, THE RIGHT, PRIVI-
LEGE AND FRANCHISE TO CONDUCT WITHIN THE CITY AN
ELECTRICAL LIGHTING AND POWER BUSINESS AND TO ERECT,
CONSTRUCT, MAINTAIN, OPERATE, USE, EXTEND, REMOVE,
REPLACE AND REPAIR IN, UNDER, UPON, OVER, ACROSS AND
ALONG ANY AND ALL OF THE PRESENT AND FUTURE PUBLIC
ROADS, HIGHWAYS, STREETS, LANES AND ALLEYS OF THE
CITY AND OVER AND ACROSS ANY STREAM OR STREAMS,
BRIDGE 0R BRIDGES, NOW OR HEREAFTER OWNED OR CON-
TROLLED BY IT A SYSTEM OF POLES, POLE LINES, TOWERS,
TRANSMISSION LINES, -WIRES, GUYS, CABLES, CONDUITS AND
OTHER DESIRABLE INSTRUMENTALITIES AND APPURTENANCES
(INCLUDING TELEGRAPH AND TELEPHONE POLES AND WIRES
FOR COMPANY'S OWN USE), NECESSARY OR PROPER FOR THE
SUPPLY AND DISTRIBUTION OF ELECTRICITY FOR LIGHT,
POWER AND HEAT, AND FOR ANY OTHER PURPOSE FOR WHICH
ELECTRICITY MAY BE USED, TO THE MUNICIPALITY AND IN-
HABITANTS OF THE MUNICIPALITY, OR ANY OTHER PERSON
0R PERSONS FOR A PERIOD FIFTY (50) ARS FROM AND
AFTER THE 7 DAY OF , 19/b0 ; REGULATING
THE USE OF STREETS BY T COMPANY AND THE REPAIR AND
RESTORATION OF STREETS ISTURBED BY CONSTRUCTION;
CONTAINING A CONTRACT BY THE COMPANY TO FURNISH
FIRST-CLASS SERVICE AND THE GRADE OF SERVICE TO ITS
CUSTOMERS AS PROVIDED BY ITS RATE SCHEDULES EXCEPT
UNDER CONDITIONS BEYOND THE COMPANY'S CONTROL; PRO-
VIDING FOR THE TEMPORARY REMOVAL, RAISING AND LOWER-
ING OF WIRES AND OTHER APPURTENANCES AND ESTABLISH-
ING STANDARDS FOR THEIR CONSTRUCTION; PROVIDING FOR
COMPENSATION TO BE PAID TO THE CITY; PROVIDING FOR
USE BY THE CITY FOR ITS TRAFFIC SIGNAL LIGHT SYSTEM
AND ITS POLICE AND FIRE ALARM SYSTEM OF CERTAIN WIRE
AND CONDUIT SPACE; PROVIDING THAT THIS FRANCHISE
SHALL NOT RP EXCLUSIVE; PROVIDING THE COMPANY'S OBLI-
GATION TO FURNISH EFFICIENT SERVICE AT REASONABLE
RATES; PROVIDING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; RESERVING ALL
POWERS OF REGULATION; PROVIDING FOR INDEMNITY BY THE
COMPANY TO THE CITY; MAKING MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
RELATIVE TO THIS GRANT OF FRANCHISE; REPEALING ALL
PREVIOUS ELECTRICAL LIGHTING AND POWER FRANCHISE
ORDINANCES; PROVIDING FOR ACCEPTANCE BY THE COMPANY;
AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN OF THE TOWN OF
PEARLAND, TEXAS:
Section 1. That, subject to the terms, condi-
tions and provisions of this ordinance, the Town of
Pearland, Texas, in the caption above and hereinafter
referred to as the "City", does hereby grant unto
Houston Lighting & Power Company, hereinafter called
"Company", its successors and assigns, the right, privilege
and franchise to conduct within the boundaries of the City,
as such boundaries now exist or may hereafter be extended,
an electrical lighting and power business and to erect, con-
struct, maintain, operate, use, extend, remove, replace and
repair, in, under, upon, over, across and along any and all
of the present and future public roads, highways, streets,
lanes and alleys owned or controlled by the City, and over
and across any stream or streams, bridge or bridges, now or
hereafter owned or controlled by City, a system of poles,
pole lines, towers, transmission lines, wires, guys, con-
duits, cables and other desirable instrumentalities and
appurtenances (including telegraph and telephone poles and
wires for use of Company), necessary or proper for the pur-
pose of carrying, conducting, supplying, distributing and
selling to the municipality and the inhabitants of said
City or other person or persons, firms or corporations, elec-
tricity for light, power and heat, and for any other purpose
for which electricity may be used; to carry, conduct, supply
and distribute electricity by means of said poles, pole lines,
towers, transmission lines, conduits, cables or other in-
strumentalities, and to sell same to said City and inhabi-
tants thereof, or to any other person or persons, firms or
corporations.
Section 2. Upon the filing with the City by the
Company of the acceptance required hereunder, this fran-
chise shall be in full force and effect for a term and
period of fifty (50) years from and after the 7 day
of 2va, , 194-e .
Section 3. All poles erected by the Company pur-
suant to the authority herein granted shall be of sound
material and reasonably straight, and shall be so set that
they will not interfere with the flow of water in any gutter
or drain, and so that the same will interfere as little as
practicable with the ordinary travel, on the streets,
2.
sidewalks, or other public ways. Within the streets or
other public ways of the City, the location and route of
all poles, stubs, guys, anchors, lines, conduits and cables
placed and constructed and to be placed and constructed by
Company in the construction and maintenance of its electrical
lighting and power system in the City, shall be subject to the
reasonable and proper regulation, control and direction of
the City, or of any City official to whom such duties have
been or may be duly delegated, which regulation and control
shall include, but not by way of limitation, the right to
require in writing the relocation of Company facilities,
exclusive of street lighting and facilities installed for
service directly to the City, at Company's cost within the
streets or other public ways whenever such shall be reason-
ably necessary on account of the widening, change of grade,
relocation, or other City construction within such streets
or public ways.
Section 4. The surface of any public road, high-
way, streets, lanes, alleys, or other public place disturbed
by Company in erecting, constructing, maintaining, operat-
ing, using, extending, removing, replacing or repairing
its electrical lighting and power system shall be restored
immediately after the completion of the work to as good
a condition as before the commencement of the work and
maintained to the satisfaction of the City, or of any City
official to whom such duties have been or may be duly dele-
gated, for one year from the date the surface of said public
road, highway, street, lane, alley, or other public place
is broken for such construction, maintenance or removal work,
after which time responsibility for the maintenance shall
become the duty of the City. No public road, highway, street,
3.
lane, alley, or other public place shall be encumbered by
construction, maintenance or removal work by Company for
a longer period than shall be necessary to execute such work.
Section 5. The service furnished hereunder to
the City and its inhabitants shall be first-class in all
respects, considering all circumstances, and Company shall
furnish the grade of service to its customers as provided
by its rate schedules and shall maintain its system in
reasonable operating condition during the continuance of
this agreement. An exception to this requirement is auto-
matically in effect when due to shortages in materials,
supplies and equipment beyond the control of the Company
and when due to fires, strikes, riots, storms, floods, war
and other casualties, and when due to Governmental regula-
tions, limitations and restrictions as to the use and avail-
ability of materials, supplies and equipment and as to the
use of the services, and when due to unforeseen and unusual
demands for service. In any of which events the Company
shall do all things reasonably within its power to restore
normal service.
Section 6. The Company on the written request of
any person shall remove or raise or lower its wires tempo-
rarily to permit construction work in the vicinity thereof
or to permit the moving of houses or other bulky structures.
The expense of such temporary removal, raising or lowering
of wires shall be paid by the benefited party or parties,
and Company may require such payment in advance, being
without obligation to remove, raise, or lower its wires
until such payment shall have been made. The Company shall
be given not less than forty-eight (48) hours advance notice
to arrange for such temporary wire changes. All of Com-
pany's lines for the transmission and distribution of
4,
electrical energy, located within City, shall be constructed,
operated and maintained, as to clearances, in accordance
with the National Electrical Safety Code, as published in
March, 1948, by the National Bureau of Standards, Handbook
30; provided, however, nothing herein shall impair the right
of the City in the future by ordinance to adopt and require
compliance with any new, amended or revised code, or by
ordinance to require compliance with such further or dif-
ferent standards as may be found to be
Section 7. In consideration for
privileges herein granted, the
City for each year of the term
Company
of this
in the public interest.
the rights and
agrees to pay to the
franchise the sum of
$500 plus a sum equal to 4% of the gross receipts for such
year, exclusive of receipts for street lighting and sales to
other electric utilities, received by the Company from its
electric energy sales at points of delivery located within
the corporate limits of the City. Payment shall be made by
the 15th day of each February for the preceding calendar year.
For fractional calendar years said $500 shall be proportion-
ately reduced and said 4% shall be based upon the gross receipts
for that part of the year involved. Said payments shall be
in lieu of any license charge or fee, street or alley rental,
or other character of charge or levy by the City for the use
or occupancy of the public roads, highways, streets, lanes,
alleys, or other public places in the City and in lieu of
any pole tax or inspection fee tax.
Section 8. In addition to the considerations set
forth in Section 7, the Company shall hold itself ready to
furnish, free of charge, subject to the use of the City,
such pole space as may be required from time to time for
the installation of City owned traffic, police and fire
alarm system conductors; provided such conductor space does
not exceed the capacity of one crossarm on any one pole and
provided such space is then available on existing poles.
The specific location for these traffic, police and fire
alarm conductors on Company poles shall be determined by
5.
the Company and will be allotted at the time specific appli-
cations for space are received from the City. All City traf-
fic, police and fire alarm circuits on Company poles shall
be installed in strict compliance with the applicable pro-
visions of the National Electrical Safety Code, Handbook 30,
as published in March, 1948, by the United States Department
of Commerce, Bureau of Standards; provided, however, noth-
ing herein shall impair the right of the City in the future
by ordinance to adopt any new, amended or revised code, or
by ordinance to specify such further or different standards
as may be found to be in the public interest. Where main
underground duct lines are located between manholes, the
Company shall permit free of charge the installation in one
interior duct by the City of its traffic, police or fire
alarm signal cables; provided space is available in an in-
terior duct not suitable for power circuits without inter-
ference with the Company's system neutral conductors. All
cables installed by the City in Company ducts shall be of
the non-metallic sheath type to prevent corrosive or electro-
lytic action between City and Company owned cables. A request
for duct assignment shall in each instance be submitted to
the Company and a sketch showing duct allocation shall be
received from the Company prior to the installation of
City cables in Company owned duct lines. All City owned
conductors and cables, whether on poles or in duct lines,
shall be constructed, maintained and operated in such manner
as to not interfere with or create a hazard in the operation
of the Company's electrical transmission and distribution
system. It is further agreed that the Company shall not be
responsible to any party or parties whatsoever for any claims,
demands, losses, suits, judgments for damages or injuries to
persons or property by reason of the construction, mainte-
nance, inspection or use of the traffic signal light system
6.
or police and fire alarm systems belonging to the City and
constructed upon company's poles or in its ducts, and the
City shall indemnify and hold the company harmless against
all such claims, losses, demands, suits and judgments, but
the City does not, by this agreement, admit primary lia-
bility to any third party by reason of the City's operation
and use of such police and fire alarm wires, such being a
function of government.
Section 9. Nothing contained in this ordinance
shall ever be construed as conferring upon Company any ex-
clusive rights or privileges of any nature whatsoever.
Section 10. It shall be the Company's obligation
as provided in Section 5 hereof to furnish efficient electri-
cal service to the public at reasonable rates and to maintain
its property in good repair and working order, except when
prevented from so doing by forces and conditions not reason-
ably within the control of Company. Should Company fail or
refuse to maintain its properties in good order and furnish
efficient service at all times throughout the life of this
grant, except only when prevented from so doing by forces
and conditions not reasonably within the control of the
Company, or should the Company fail or refuse to furnish
efficient service at reasonable rates, lawfully determined
by the City, throughout the life of this grant, excepting
only during such periods as the Company shall in good faith
and diligently contest the reasonableness of the rates in
question, then it shall pay to the City the sum of Twenty -
Five Dollars ($25) for each day it shall so fail or refuse
after reasonable notice thereof and a hearing thereon by
the City. Any suit to recover such sum shall be filed
within one year from the date of accrual.
Section 11. If any provision, section, sub-
section, sentence, clause, or phrase of this ordinance is
7.
for any reason held to be unconstitutional, void or invalid
(or for any reason unenforceable), the validity of the re-
maining portions of this ordinance shall not be affected
thereby, it being the intent of the City in adopting this
ordinance that no portion thereof or provision or regulation
contained herein shall become inoperative or fail by reason
of any unconstitutionality or invalidity of any other portion,
provision or regulation, and to this end, all provisions
of this ordinance are declared to be severable.
Section 12. The City by the granting of this
franchise does not surrender or to any extent lose, waive,
impair or lessen the lawful powers and rights, now or here-
after vested in the City to regulate the rates and services
of Company; and Company by its acceptance of this franchise
agrees that all such lawful regulatory powers and rights as
the same may be from time to time vested in the City shall
be in full force and effect and subject to the exercise
thereof by the City at any time and from time to time.
Section 13. The Company, its successors and as-
signs, shall protect and hold City harmless against all
claims for damages or demands for damages to any person or
property by reason of the construction and maintenance of
its electrical lighting and power system, or in any way
growing out of the granting of this franchise, either
directly or indrectly, or by reason of any act, negli-
gence, or nonfeasance of the contractors, agents or em-
ployees of Company, its successors or assigns, and shall
refund to City all sums which it may be adjudged to pay on
any such claim, or which may arise or grow out of the ex-
ercise of the rights and privileges hereby granted, or by
the abuse thereof, and Company, its successors and assigns,
shall indemnify and hold the City harmless from and on
account of all damages, costs, expenses, actions, and causes
8.
of action that may accrue to or be brought by any person,
persons, company or companies at any time hereafter by
reason of the exercise of the rights and privileges hereby
granted, or of the abuse thereof.
Section 14. In granting this franchise, it is
understood that the lawful power vested by law in the City
to regulate all public utilities within City, and to regu-
late the local rates of public utilities within the City
within the limits
quire all persons
and undertakings,
of the Constitution and laws, and to re -
or corporations to discharge the duties
for the performance
chise was made, is reserved; and this
Jett to all lawful rights, powers and
of which this fran-
grant is made sub -
authorities, either
of regulation or otherwise, reserved to the City by law.
Section 15, This franchise replaces all former
franchise agreements or ordinances with Company, or its
predecessors, which are hereby repealed, such repeal to
be effective upon the date operations are started under
this franchise.
Section 16. The Company shall, within thirty
(30) days from the date this ordinance is passed and ap-
proved, file with the City a written statement signed in
its name and behalf in the following form:
"To the Town of Pearland, Texas:
"The Company for itself, its succes-
sors and assigns, hereby accepts the above
and foregoing ordinance and agrees to be
bound by all of its terms and provisions.
HOUSTON LIGHTING & POWER COMPANY
By
"Dated the 7 day of ,
Section 17. This ordinance shall take effect
and be in force from and after its passage and approval,
9.
and upon acceptance by the Company the term of this fran-
chise shall begin and continue in accordance with Section
2 hereof.
Passed and approved this the
4au. , 19Zo.
7
day of
MAYOR
THE STATE OF TEXAS )
COUNTY OF BRAZORIA )
I, IC;pic ,
acting Secretary of the Town of Pear -
land, Texas, hereby certify that the above and foregoing
ordinance of the Town of Pearland was passed at a regular
meeting of the Board of Aldermen of the Town of Pearland
held on the ,�yy day of tA,gt{/'q/Ly 19 at
whit, meeting he Mayo ar}ldermen C;- nj ,61 ,
DMA 0 h.. SRt -03 Jet an
were present and actea as the Boar
same has been approved by the Mayor
the Secretary and that the same has
enrolled in the records of the Town
rougnou that the
and is duly attested by
been duly engrossed and
of Pearland.
EXECUTED under my hand and the official seal of
the Town of Pearland, Texas, at said Town of Pearland,
this yele day of J,q A/J,g /Zc/ , 1944.
.
SEC
TOWN OF PEARLAND, TEXAS
10.
To the Town of pearland, Texas:
The Company for itself, its successors and assigns,
hereby accepts the above and foregoing ordinance and agrees
to be bound by all of its terms and provisions.
HOUSTON LIGHT NG & POWER COMPANY
By
F. Iv . Austin, Vice President
Dated the 8th day of January , 19 60 .
THE STATE OF TEXAS
COUNTY OF BRAZORIA
I, �CloK /�• /VO Gaw.t/
, the duly
appointed, qualified and acting Secretary of the Town of
Pearland, Texas, hereby certify that the above and fore-
going Acceptance was received and filed in the office of
N
the Secretary of the Town of Pearland on the i' L day of
JAue4fig , 1942.
EXECUTED under my hand and the official seal of
the Town of Pearland, Texas, at said Town of Pearland
this Pp N
day of \14A/r/ .9 194
TOWN OF PEARLiND, TEXAS