1668 ORDINANCE NO. 1668
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF SANFORD, FLORIDA, GRANTING
TO FLORIDA PUBLIC UTILITIES COMPANY, ITS SUCCESSORS AND
ASSIGNS, A GAS FRANCHISE AND IMPOSING PROVISIONS AND
CONDITIONS RELATING THERETO; PROVIDING FOR SEVERABILITY,
CONFLICTS AND EFFECTIVE DATE.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY OF SANFORD, FLORIDA:
SECTION 1: The City of Sanford, Florida, a Municipal Corporation
(herein referred to as "Grantor"), hereby granted to FLORIDA PUBLIC
UTILITIES COMPANY, a Florida Corporation (herein referred to as "Grantee"),
its successors and assigns, for the term of thirty (30) years beginning
ten (10) days after the date of the final passage of this Ordinance,
the right, privilege and authority or franchise to construct or otherwise
acquire and to own, maintain, equip and operate plans and works, and
all necessary or desirable facilities appurtenant thereto, for the purchase,
transmission, distribution and sale of natural gas, which term "natural
gas" shall mean and include either natural gas unmixed as delivered to
Grantee or any mixture of such natural gas with artificial gas or with
liquefied petroleum gas or with both (herein referred to generally as
"gas"), including the right without the payment by Grantee of any tax,
assessment or charges therefor to construct, lay, extend, maintain,
renew, remove, replace, repair, use and operate gas pipes and gas mains,
and all appurtenances and appendages thereto, in, under, on or across
the present and future public streets, avenues, alleys, highwayS, bridges,
easements and other public places within the present or any future
corporate limits of the Grantor or its successors, for the purpose of
distributing, supplying and selling gas to Grantor or its successors,
and to persons and corporations inhabitants thereof as well as to persons
or corporations beyond the present or future corporate limits thereof, but
nothing herein contained shall relieve Grantee from meeting all requirements
of the Grantor's Codes and payment of any fees, licenses or ad valorem
taxes.
SECTION 2: Grantee's facilities shall be so located or
relocated and so erected as to interfere as little as possible with traffic
over said streets, avenues, alleys, highways, bridges, easements and
other public places, and to interfere as little as possible with reasonable
egress from and ingress to abutting property. The location or relocation
of all facilities shall be made under the supervision and with the
approval of such representatives as the governing body of Grantor may
designate for the purpose, but not so as unreasonably to interfere with
the proper operation of Grantee's facilities and service. When any
portion of the Grantor's property is excavated or disturbed by Grantee
in the location or relocation of any of its facilities, the portion
of the Grantor's property so excavated or disturbed shall be replaced
by the Grantee at its expense in a timely fashion not to exceed thirty (30)
days and in as good condition as it was at the time of such excavation,
and, in addition, such work shall be done only in the manner and
pursuant to the regulations, if any, established by the ordinances of
the Grantor. And upon failure of Grantee so to do after twenty (20)
days' notice in writing shall have been given to said Grantee by the
representative of the Grantor, the Grantor may repair such portion of the
Grantor's property that may have been disturbed by said Grantee, or
replace any excavation, and the cost of same shall be paid by said
Grantee.
SECTION 3: Subject to the provisions hereof, Grantee shall at all
times during the term of this franchise, promptly and without discrimination,
furnish an adequate supply of gas of standard quality and at a reasonably
uniform and adequate pressure to be maintained on Grantee's system,
to Grantor and its successors, and to persons and corporation inhabitants
thereof who request the same and who agree to abide by Grantee's
reasonable rules and regulations, and shall acquire, construct, maintain,
equip and operate all necessary plants, works and facilities for the
purpose, transmission, supply, peak shaving, distribution and sale of gas
for the benefit and convenience of Grantor and its inhabitants, and shall
make promptly such extensions to existing facilities as may be required
by one or more customer, or prospective customers; provided that if the
revenues to be derived from such extensions shall not afford a fair and
reasonable return on the cost of providing and rendering the required
service, then Grantee shall be permitted to, and is hereby authorized to
exact from such customer or customers such reasonable cash advances,
contributions, minimum guarantees, service guarantees or other arrangements,
as will enable Grantee to earn a fair and reasonable return on the cost
of providing and rendering the required service.
SECTION 4: Grantee's rates for gas shall at all times be
subject to such regulations as may be provided by law. Grantee shall
not be entitled to claim any value on account of this franchise in the
value of Grantee's property or rate base.
SECTION 5: Subject to the consumer's consent, Grantee shall
have the right to install and maintain on the premises of each of its
customers meters for measuring gas sold and delivered and shall have
the right of ingress and egress to the premises of each consumer free
of charge, from time to time, for the purpose of reading, repairing,
testing and maintaining Grantee's meters and appurtenances. Such meters
and appurtenances shall at all times remain the property of Grantee,
and shall be removable by Grantee at any time, by lawful means.
SECTION 6: Grantee shall have the right to adopt and enforce
reasonable rules and regulations with respect to the extension, initiation
and rendering of gas service, including rules providing for the
discontinuance of service to any customer on account of nonpayment of
bills when due, or upon failure to comply with the Grantee's other
reasonable rules and regulations.
SECTION 7: Grantee shall indemnify and save and keep Grantor
harmless from any and all liability by reason of damage or injury to any
person or property whatsoever on account of the negligence of Grantee in
the installation, maintenance, and operation of its facilities; provided
Grantor shall promptly in each case notify Grantee in writing of any claim
against Grantor on account thereof, and shall afford Grantee opportunity
to defend the same.
SECTION 8: Within thirty (30) days after the first anniversary
date of this grant and within thirty (30) days after each succeeding
anniversary date during the existence of this grant, the Grantee, its
successors and assigns, shall pay to the Grantor or its successors a
privilege tax equal to the amount by which six (6) percent of the amount
of its gross revenues (gross revenues being the amount of revenues
collected less adjustments) from the sale of gas to residential customers
within the corporate limits of Grantor for the twelve calendar months
preceding the applicable anniversary date shall exceed the amount of any
other taxes or licenses levied or imposed by Grantor against Grantee's
property, business, revenues, privileges, or operations for the tax year
preceding the beginning of the applicable privilege tax year.
SECTION 9: Grantee by its acceptance hereof agrees to observe,
perform and keep all of the agreements, undertakings and conditions hereof
to be observed, performed and kept by Grantee.
SECTION 10: Failure on the part of Grantee to comply in any
substantial respect with any of the provisions of this Ordinance shall
be grounds for a forfeiture of this grant, but no such forfeiture shall
take effect if the reasonableness or propriety thereof is protested by
Grantee until a court of competent jurisdiction (with right of appeal
in either party) shall have found that Grantee has failed to comply in
a substantial respect with any of the provisions of this franchise,
and the Grantee shall, after the final determination of the question,
forthwith proceed to make good the default before a forfeiture shall result,
the default to be cured in any event within a period of six months ~ith
the right in Grantor at its discretion to grant such additional time
to Grantee for compliance as necessities in the case require.
SECTION 11: In any case where there is interruption or impairment
of service, or failure of supply of gas or pressure, Grantee shall promptly
remedy such condition. No interruption or impairment of service or failure
of supply of gas or pressure by reason of force majeure, strike, breakdown,
accident or other cause or happening!beyond the control of Grantee shall
constitute a breach of this Ordinance nor subject the Grantee to liability
for damage; provided that such interruption or impairment of service or
failure of supply of gas or pressure by reason of force majeure, strike,
breakdown, accident, or other cause or happening shall be remedied
promptly.
SECTION 12: In consideration of Grantee's undertakings hereunder
as evidenced by its acceptance hereof, the Grantor agrees not to engage
in the business of distributing and selling gas during the life of this
franchise or any extension in competition with the Grantee, its successors
and assigns.
SECTION 13: Grantor hereby reserves the right at and after the
expiration or termination of this grant to purchase the property of Grantee
used under this grant, as provided by the laws of Florida in effect at the
time of Grantee's acceptance hereof, and as a condition precedent to the
taking effect of this grant, Grantee shall give and grant to the Grantor
the right to purchase so reserved. Grantee shall be deemed to have given
and granted such right of purchase by its acceptance hereof, which shall
be filed with the Grantor's Clerk within thirty (30) days after the final
passage of this Ordinance.
SECTION 14: All of the terms, provisions and conditions
hereof shall inure toand be binding upon the respective successors and
assigns of the Grantor and the Grantee.
SECTION 15: If any section o~ portion of a Section of this
ordinance proves to be invalid, unlawful, o~ unconstitutional, it shall not be
held to invalidate or impair the validi~y,zforce or effect of any other
section or part of this ordinance.
SECTION 16: That all ordinances or parts of ordinances in
conflict herewith, be and the same are hereby repealed.
SECTION 17: That this ordinance shall become effective
ten (10) days after the date of its final passage and adoption.
PASSED AND ADOPTED this 28th day of November , A. D.
1983.
MAYOR
ATTEST:
cITY'
City of Sanford, Florida.
CERTIFICATE
I, H. N. Tamm, Jr., City Clerk of the City of San-
ford, Florida, do hereby certify that a true and correct
copy of the foregoing Ordinance No. 1668, PASSED and ADOPTED
by the City Commission of the City of Sanford, Florida, on
the 28th day of November, 1983, was POSTED at the front door
of the City Hall in the City of Sanford, Florida, on the
29th day of November, 1983.
City of S~nford, Florida
" FLO A
PUBLIC U COMPANY
Po O. Drawer C
West Palm Beach, Florida 33402
December 5, 1983
City Commission
City of Sanford
P. O. Box 1778
Sanford, Florida
Attention: H. N. TammJr., City Clerk
Gentlemen:
This letteris written to you for the purposeof acknowledging receipt of a
certified copy of Ordinance No. t668.passed and adopted by the City
CQmmission of Sanford, Florida on November 28, 1983, granting unto Florida
Public Utilities Company certain rights and privileges in regard to the
distribution and sale of Natural Gas within the corporate limits of the
City of Sanford, and to accept the terms of said Ordinance and we do
hereby agree to abide by the terms of said Ordinance.
Yours very truly,
FLORIDA PUBLIC UTILITIES COMPANY
F. C. Cressman
Senior Vice President