Deal Allows Avenue Cable to Audiotape Workshops

The city and Avenue TV Cable reached an agreement Friday allowing the company to audiotape a series of public cable TV workshops.

Participants in the workshops will later be heard but not seen on televisions served by Avenue Cable. Instead, viewers will see graphics and other footage provided by the city.

The compromise comes after a federal judge Oct. 13 urged both sides to settle their differences outside the courtroom.

“I’m pleased we are able to avoid long, drawn-out litigation because litigation would be an absolute loser for the subscriber,” said Ventura Mayor Jim Friedman.

Avenue TV Cable owner Stephen George was also satisfied with the agreement.

“I’m just very excited this is over and we can move forward,” George said.

Under the agreement, Avenue TV Cable may audiotape the focus groups for later cablecast. A date has not yet been set.

Deputy City Atty. Karl Berger said the city will videotape an introduction to the cable workshops by its cable consultant, Sue Buske. It also will provide images to accompany the audio recording.

Berger said the city will give George copies of all handouts from the workshop so the graphics can be produced.

Information from the public focus groups will be used by the city to negotiate its 15-year, multimillion-dollar cable franchise contracts with Avenue TV Cable and Century Communications Corp.

Avenue TV Cable filed a federal complaint against the city Oct. 7 after officials barred it from audio and videotaping the public workshops, which were scheduled earlier this month. The complaint charged the city was violating state open meeting laws, the Federal Communications Act and the company’s freedom of speech.

The city contended that video cameras would inhibit participation in the sessions.

U.S. District Judge Margaret M. Morrow issued a temporary restraining order against the city, forcing officials to allow the videotaping. At that point, the city immediately canceled the sessions.

When attorneys for both sides appeared in court Oct. 13, Morrow issued a tentative ruling bolstering the city’s ban on video cameras. She was not convinced, however, that audiotaping should be prohibited.

The workshops have been rescheduled for the week of Nov. 16.