§ 8-232. Sale or transfer of franchise.

(a)

No grantee shall sell, transfer, lease, assign, sublet, or dispose of, in whole or in part, an interest in or control of a franchise or cable system or any of the rights or privileges granted by a franchise agreement, without the prior consent of the grantor, which consent shall not be unreasonably denied or delayed and may be denied only upon a good faith finding by the grantor that the proposed transferee lacks the legal, technical, or financial qualifications to consummate the transaction and operate the system so as to perform its obligations under this article and the applicable franchise agreement. This section shall not apply to sales of property or equipment in the normal course of business. Consent from the grantor shall not be required for a transfer in trust, mortgage, or other instrument of hypothecation, in whole or in part, to secure indebtedness, or for a transfer to a person controlling, controlled by, or under common control with a grantee.

(b)

The following additional events shall be deemed to be a sale, assignment, or other transfer of an interest in or control of a grantee or its franchise or cable system requiring compliance with this section: (i) the sale, assignment, or other transfer of all or a majority of a grantee's assets; (ii) the sale, assignment, or other transfer of capital stock or partnership, membership, or other equity interests in a grantee by one (1) or more of its existing shareholders, partners, members, or other equity owners so as to create a new controlling interest in a grantee; (iii) the issuance of additional capital stock or partnership, membership or other equity interest by a grantee so as to create a new controlling interest in a grantee; and (iv) a grantee's agreement to transfer management or operation of the grantee or the system. The term "controlling interest" as used herein is not limited to major stockholders but includes actual working control in whatever manner exercised.

(c)

In the case of any sale or transfer of ownership of an interest in or control of a grantee or its franchise or cable system, the county shall have one hundred twenty (120) days to act upon any request for approval of such sale or transfer that contains or is accompanied by such information as is required in accordance with FCC regulations and the requirements of this article and the applicable franchise agreement, including information related to the legal, technical and financial qualifications, and the proposed transferee's ability to operate the system in accord with this article and the franchise agreement. Failure to provide all information reasonably requested by the county as part of its review may be grounds for a denial of the proposed transfer. If the county fails to render a final decision on the request within one hundred twenty (120) days after receipt by the county of all required information, such request shall be deemed granted unless the grantee and the county agree to an extension of the one-hundred-twenty-day period.

(d)

The consent or approval of the county to any transfer of the grantee shall not constitute a waiver or release of the rights of the county in and to the rights-of-way, and any transfer shall, by its terms, be expressly subject to the terms and conditions of this article and the franchise agreement.

(e)

In the absence of extraordinary circumstances, the county will not approve any transfer or assignment of the franchise prior to completion of construction of the proposed initial system.

(f)

Any approval by the county of a transfer shall be contingent upon the prospective new grantee becoming a signatory to the franchise agreement.

(Ord. of 11-18-02)