YORK COUNTY — The York County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to approve a cable franchise agreement with the Shenandoah Cable Television, LLC (Shentel) during its regular meeting on March 15.
According to a memorandum from County Administrator Neil Morgan, the terms in the non-exclusive agreement are based upon similar agreements between York County and Cox Communication as well as Verizon. It is also similar to the agreements that Shentel entered into with both the City of Williamsburg and James City County.
The main difference between the County’s agreement with Shentel those that it holds with Cox and Verizon is that Shentel’s agreement only applies to the northern part of the County.
According to the memo, “[The] company’s proposed infrastructure will only allow them to service residents in that district based on proximity. Requiring them to service the entire County would not be a practical business option and thus was rejected by them during negotiations.”
According to the agreement, Shentel should be operational within the next two years.
Shentel’s representative at the Board meeting, Stuart French, went over some of the finer points of the agreement and explained to the Board what Shentel was looking to bring to the area.
“We have over $245 million in annual revenue and I only call that out to make it abundantly clear that we are not here looking for tax breaks or any subsidiziation of this build,” he said. “This is purely a capital intensive project of our own means. We are just looking to bring competitive options to the residents of York County.”
Shentel is a 119-year-old company based out of the Shenandoah Valley and was founded as a phone company. Today, it offers broadband and other services to residents in Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Maryland.
