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Committee forwards resolution to allow Ziply Fiber to assign part of its franchise to NFC Northwest
Summary
City staff told the committee Ziply Fiber Pacific LLC seeks to assign a significant portion of its city franchise area to NFC Northwest LLC; staff said the practice is common and recommended forwarding the resolution to council, which the committee did unanimously.
City staff presented a resolution on April 6 recommending that the council approve Ziply Fiber Pacific LLC's request to assign a portion of its Federal Way franchise to NFC Northwest LLC.
Mr. Elliott explained the request is allowed under Ziply's franchise ordinance (No. 24998) because the agreement permits assignment of portions of the franchise with council approval. He displayed a map showing the ‘blue’ service area proposed for assignment; Ziply would retain backbone and point‑of‑presence facilities.
Councilmembers asked why a franchise holder would assign a portion of its area. Mr. Elliott said the practice is common: companies configure and then sell or assign service areas to other providers. Council also asked whether recent pavement markings and flags indicate fiber construction. Staff explained white pavement layout markings can be used by any party working in the right‑of‑way and that different paint and flag colors generally indicate utilities (blue for water, red for power, orange for gas), so markings alone do not confirm which firm is working.
The committee moved to forward the proposed resolution to the April 21 consent agenda; the motion passed by unanimous voice vote.
Next steps: the resolution will be considered by full council on April 21.
