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| Alderman Burke presides over the March 4th Committee on Finance Meeting. |
Today the Committee on Finance convened and voted on an
extension of the Comcast cable franchise, granting the City another three
months to work out an agreement with Comcast. Included in this decision is the
option for an additional three month extension at the discretion of the BACP
Commissioner should even more time be needed. CMA members were in attendance
and happy to hear multiple Aldermen speak up and ask questions about the
franchise process, the reasons for the extension, and make their expectations
clear.
Aldermen Reilly, Alderman Pope, and Alderman Arena made
especially strong statements and proved themselves allies of the public when it
comes to the Comcast franchise. Two important points were made by each of these
Aldermen independently:
- They expect a quick resolution within three months if not sooner.
- They expect that CAN TV’s benefits in the Comcast renewal agreement to at a minimum be equivalent to the RCN agreement.
Alderman Pope expressed surprise that they were asking for
an extension given that the RCN agreement provides a template that was
agreeable to all parties. Alderman Reilly brought his concern that Chicago not
end up like other cities where public access has been defunded by cable
companies. Alderman Arena told the city representatives that he and his
colleagues take seriously the negotiations and they are aware of how important
CAN TV is to Chicagoans.
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