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Committee agrees to franchise agreement request for UD Fiber (entity transfer); company to provide route map later
Summary
The finance committee voted to approve a franchise agreement request from UD Fiber (a new entity related to Southern Mike LLC) for citywide fiber service; the company said no immediate construction is planned and will provide a route map to the city.
The Homewood City Finance Committee approved a franchise agreement request from UD Fiber, a fiber‑optic broadband company that said it is the sister company of Southern Mike LLC and is changing ownership of certain facilities as part of a financing transaction.
Tim Gallagher, representing UD Fiber, said the company provides high‑capacity fiber to commercial, industrial and municipal users (not direct‑to‑residential service) and that the request is for citywide franchise rights to cover intermediate and long‑term growth. Gallagher said there is no near‑term plan to build additional infrastructure; the request is to legalize the entity name change and enable future expansion. He said UD Fiber will provide a current route map showing its network.
Councilor Almon moved approval; Councilor Guatney seconded. The motion passed 5 to 0.
Committee members asked about legal constraints on franchise agreements generally; a city representative noted that franchise agreements are typically granted unless there are legal reasons not to do so and that the franchise process includes route documentation and permitting for any actual construction.
The approval permits UD Fiber to proceed with the administrative franchise step; any physical work will require permits and additional approvals as required by city code.
