CVT commission approves one-year TPO agreement, sets $20,000 cap for moving costs

The Wilmington Cable Video and Telecommunications Commission voted Feb. 28 to approve a one-year agreement that shifts responsibility for the TPO’s studio lease, utilities and equipment off the city and authorizes up to $20,000 in reimbursement for unforeseen costs related to moving the TPO’s operations.

The decision matters because the city’s current lease for the TPO space ends March 31 and commissioners and the TPO operator warned the relocation and equipment reconfiguration could interrupt local public-education-and-government programming for weeks to months.

Chair Trippie Congo opened the discussion and staff presented a proposed one-year arrangement in which the city would no longer be responsible for the lease, utilities, equipment maintenance or new equipment costs tied to the TPO site. Michelle Bassenite, identified in the meeting as the council’s senior legislative advisor, told commissioners the agreement would include a stated purpose clarifying the TPO’s community role and that the city would not assume moving costs if the TPO relocates from its current site — except for moving a station location from the Third Floor to the First Floor, which the city agreed to absorb.

Commissioners and TPO representatives discussed timing and likely costs. Michelle Bassenite told the commission the city’s current third-floor lease ends March 31 and described annual lease numbers the commission had discussed previously: "The total lease agreement for a year is a hundred and 5,000. We anticipate getting, like, 90,000" from Comcast franchise revenues to help cover lease and utilities. April Johnson, identified as director of operations for DETV, asked whether the TPO would remain responsible for additional line-related services and fees such as Telview and Internet; the meeting record includes a staff estimate that a Telview subscription runs about $3,000 annually, though participants said they would confirm who has been billed in recent years.

DETV representative Ivan Thomas described past moves and warned of cash-flow and operational disruption if the transition is rushed: "So this has definitely disrupted our cash flow," and later said reconfiguring the downstairs studio and wiring could take time, adding that the station may run reruns while equipment is reinstalled. In response to those concerns, Commissioner Walker proposed and moved a recommendation to set an administrative reimbursement cap of $20,000 for unforeseen TPO moving costs; the commission seconded the motion and voted to approve the cap.

The commission then voted to accept the one-year agreement with that cap in place. The motion passed; the transcript records one commissioner voting no but does not identify the member by name. Commissioners asked staff to collect prior move invoices and other hard costs so they could set a clear reimbursement process and verify the $20,000 cap against prior expenditures.

Staff and the station manager were assigned next steps: confirm who has been charged for Telview and Internet costs, assess city-owned equipment for possible donation to the DTV Foundation (a donation would require procurement procedures and potentially a council resolution), notify the BPG landlord about nonrenewal of the lease, and coordinate with Comcast about moving the cable line from the Third Floor to the First Floor. Commissioners also discussed partial parking reimbursement previously discussed by staff and asked that staff look into that matter.

Commissioners and staff said the commission will review financial implications for fiscal 2027 and consider an RFP for a multiyear TPO contract so the city would not rely on repeated one-year agreements. Several commissioners emphasized they want to limit service interruption and asked staff to return with detailed cost estimates and documented invoices from the previous move before executing additional reimbursements.

Votes at a glance: - Motion to adopt minutes from Feb. 18, 2024 — moved and seconded on the record; vote: adopted. (No named roll-call in transcript.) - Motion to set an administrative reimbursement cap of $20,000 for unforeseen TPO moving costs — mover: Commissioner Walker; second: not named on the record; outcome: approved. - Motion to accept the proposed one-year TPO agreement with the $20,000 cap — mover: Commissioner Walker; second: not named on the record; outcome: approved; meeting record notes one recorded no vote (name not specified).

The commission closed the meeting with staff directed to follow up on invoices, Telview billing, and coordination with the landlord and Comcast. The station manager will inventory city equipment and assess usability and fair market value if donation to the DTV Foundation is pursued. The commission signaled interest in exploring a competitive multiyear contract for the TPO in future proceedings.