Document text
- Subscribe - Contact Us - Rate Card - Place an Ad Archives Revels Classifieds Real Estate Menu Guide Wedding Weather Subscribe Contact Us April 26, 2005 AFN’s projected debt jumps Failure to attract new cable customers leads to estimated $3.8 million shortfall through 2011 By Vickie Aldous Ashland Daily Tidings The Ashland Fiber Network’s projected deficit has ballooned. Source: Ashland Finance Dept. projections included in proposed 2005 - 2006 city budget. City staff previously estimated the municipal cable television and high-speed Internet service would have a shortfall of approximately $200,000 this fiscal year, with deficits reaching $400,000 to $425,000 annually in subsequent years. But after factoring in flat growth rates from the quarter that ended March 31, the Ashland Finance Department now is projecting the deficit will remain at $200,000 this year, but will hit $500,000 in the next fiscal year and hit a peak of $800,000 in the 2009 fiscal year. The deficit could fall to $350,000 in 2011. Finance Director Lee Tuneberg said the earlier $400,000 to $425,000 annual projection was based on estimates that AFN would attract more customers. “I think when we were looking at that range we were looking at some growth and some savings. It just hasn’t gelled,” Tuneberg said. The Ashland City Council will hold a study session on AFN at 5 p.m. today in the Ashland Civic Center Council Chambers, 1175 E. Main St. Study sessions are open to the public, although opportunities for public input are at the discretion of the council. In 2004, Navigant Consulting Inc. recommended a number of changes to AFN to attract more customers. Those were adopted, but the firm’s projections of growth have fallen short. AFN’s financial woes have led some residents to call for a reexamination of the troubled city service. “Some of us think the city should find a way to get out from under AFN,” said Ashland Citizens’ Budget Committee member David Williams. “It’s not fair to tax all citizens to subsidize a system that a lot of the city isn’t using.” The city council has been presented with a number of options for covering AFN’s deficit, including selling city property. But Tuneberg said he is recommending any subsidy be more closely linked to AFN, which grew out of the city’s Electric Department before Wanderscheid became director of the department and AFN. Tuneberg said the city council should look at raising cable television rates, or perhaps electric rates, to cover deficits. Agenda items for Tuesday’s meeting include discussion of City Administrator Gino Grimaldi’s proposal to reorganize AFN. Wanderscheid would devote all his time to the electric department, where he is facing numerous time-intensive projects, according to a memo to councilors from Grimaldi. A new person would be hired to head AFN, and that person would report to Tuneberg. A vacant AFN technician position would go unfilled to offset the cost of the new AFN head. A controller position would be added to the finance department to make up for some of the time Tuneberg spends on AFN issues, according to the memo. Councilors also received a memo from Wanderscheid, who — at their request — researched predatory pricing issues relating to Charter Communications, the company which competes with the city in offering cable television and high-speed Internet. Until a recent article in the Tidings, Charter had been offering a popular cable television package for approximately $20 less per month in Ashland than in surrounding communities which lack municipal telecommunications services. Charter raised its rates upon publication of the article. Charter and AFN now both offer the cable package for about $10 less per month than in Medford, Talent and Grants Pass. City officials in Scottsboro, Ala., filed complaints with the Federal Communications Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice about Charter offering deep discounts in their community, but received no action from the government regulatory bodies. However, Charter ceased its deep discounting, perhaps because of the negative publicity generated by the city’s formal complaints, according to Wanderscheid’s memo. Staff writer Vickie Aldous can be reached at 482-3456 x 3016 or [email protected]. DailyTidings.com Home Page Archives | Revels | Classifieds | Real Estate Guide | Weather | Subscribe | Contact Us Copyright 2005 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers All Rights Reserved Free Musick Downloads Slippers Women's & Men's Slippers Ceramic Piggy Banks heloc Calenders 2005 Calender 2005 Accelerate Weightloss Products Memory Foam Mattress tcg student loan consolidation home equity loans teleconferencing W2 Forms cortisol weight loss Tatoos website design & marketing student loans African Safari Conference Calls - $50/Month Security Systems diamonds Currancy Exchange Online Casinos Community Student Loans Tatoo Poker Games Homeschooling Click Here .:Advertisements:. Site Search: RESOURCES - Mail Tribune News - ODOT Road Cams