Jamie McGee, and Joey Garrison

The Tennessean

Google Fiber, the city's newest internet provider, says delays surrounding utility pole attachment agreements are slowing expansion in Nashville as the company pushes a new Metro ordinance that addresses its concerns.

The Metro ordinance, which will be considered Tuesday on a first of three council votes, is designed to streamline what Google describes as a cumbersome process to attach its cables onto utility poles. Under current law, existing providers must move their own lines before a new provider can add another cable. AT&T and Comcast are opposed to the ordinance, referred to as One Touch Make Ready.

"The current process is slow and ineffective for a project of the size and scale of Google Fiber," Amol Naik, Google Fiber's Southeast head of external affairs, said in an emailed statement. "To build quickly and broadly in Nashville, we need a sensible policy like One Touch Make Ready."

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The issue sets the stage for a lobbying battle at the Metro Courthouse between a trio of corporate giants seeking to attract and hold onto customers as Google expands its presence across the U.S. Comcast has mocked Google's offerings in television commercials, and AT&T has sought to block Google Fiber-led ordinances in other cities.

To connect Nashville homes to gigabit speed internet, Google Fiber needs to attach its fiber-optic cables to the city's nearly 90,000 utility poles, which already are used by its competitors. Google said since January it has submitted between 1,000 and 1,500 pole move applications weekly and only a few hundred poles have been made ready for Google, leaving local residents frustrated with the pace.

Lead bill sponsor Councilman Anthony Davis, who said the legislation has about 15 co-sponsors in the 40-member council, called the proposal a “no-brainer” measure to accommodate “a new era of telecommunication” in Nashville.

“Yes, obviously Google is the new player in the market, and they are being very slow coming into the market largely because of the poles policy and other folks moving their lines,” Davis said. “But once you investigate it further, it seems like a policy that really makes sense.”

Davis said he doesn’t believe the ordinance would give Google Fiber an unfair advantage over other telecommunication companies in Nashville.

“I think they’re at a major disadvantage right now,” he said. “I don’t think it gives them an advantage.”

Google officials said the pole attachment issue has become a significant hurdle in Nashville because of the region's deep limestone that limits underground installation. Ninety percent of Google's 3,200 miles of fiber will be connected through utility poles, as a result.

In addition to fixing Google's immediate issue, the company called the proposal "a necessary step" that will benefit other companies as Nashville grows.

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The ordinance would give Google Fiber, or any other provider seeking to add a line, the ability to hire an approved vendor to move all the lines at the same time. Instead of closing roads and sidewalks when each provider adjusts the pole, the ordinance would allow the work to be done once.

AT&T said its union contract with Communications Workers of America would be violated under the proposed ordinance because non-represented workers could be changing the lines. The company says pole attachment regulation is under the jurisdiction of the Federal Communications Commission, not municipalities, a point the company is arguing in a lawsuit against Louisville, Ky., concerning a similar ordinance in that city.

"Like other providers have previously stated we also have serious concerns with other companies being allowed to perform work on our facilities without providing us notice," AT&T Tennessee spokesman Joe Burgan said in an emailed statement. "We already have a national agreement with Google to give them access on a city-by-city basis. We’re glad to grant them access to our poles like we have for others, but Google attempting to change the rules for their benefit is ridiculous.”

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In an email sent Monday, AT&T President Joelle Phillips urged AT&T workers and retirees to voice opposition to the proposed ordinance, calling it "government overreach."

"The Council should not interfere with AT&T’s relationship with the CWA, or to take work away from union-represented AT&T employees," she said in the emailed statement.

Comcast is pushing for more discussions ahead of the Metro Council meeting Tuesday, where the ordinance is up for first reading. The company said it has not delayed any Google Fiber activity and that it coordinates weekly with Google Fiber to prioritize which lines to move first.

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"All broadband providers face numerous challenges in Nashville with the make-ready and permitting processes that have impacted timely deployment and expansion of broadband facilities," Comcast said in a statement. "We believe that the appropriate next step would be to conduct a meeting of all impacted stakeholders — including AT&T, Comcast, Google Fiber, NES (Nashville Electric Service), and Public Works — to review the make-ready and permit process and discuss areas for improvement. This should be accomplished prior to any proposed legislation."

Assuming the bill clears a procedural first vote, the legislation would be voted on second reading in two weeks. That timeline would set up final approval in September.

NES, which oversees most of the city’s poles, has not taken a position on the legislation. A spokesman for Nashville Mayor Megan Barry’s office said the administration is neutral for now.

Behind the scenes, some of Nashville’s most high-powered lobbyists are prepared to fight over the ordinance. Google is represented by an army of Metro lobbyists led by Tom Ingram's The Ingram Group and DVL Seigenthaler public relations firm, while Comcast is backed by prominent attorney James Weaver of Waller Law.

Other bill sponsors include council members Jeremy Elrod, Bill Pridemore, Russ Pulley, Mina Johnson, Angie Henderson and Robert Swope. Despite the strong early backing of the bill, some council members say they want to learn more about the issue before signing on.

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At-large Councilman John Cooper said he’s still looking for answers from both sides of the debate, including over property rights questions he said are raised in the legislation, and more importantly, the effect on the consumer.

“That’s what I’m going to be looking for as the discussion unfolds,” Cooper said. “It should not be about how one telecommunication monopoly can make more money more quickly. It needs to be about how can an action, particularly by a public body, benefit the public. The onus is on Google to demonstrate that.”

Elrod said he believes the legislation is “business-friendly” by promoting competition for internet service in Davidson County.

“Right now, it’s anti-competitive for the other two service providers to literally not get out of the way so that Google Fiber can also offer internet service. This is just to level the playing field and to allow any internet service that wants to come to Nashville, that’s willing to pay to make those poles ready, to offer their services.”

Reach Jamie McGee at 615-259-8071 and on Twitter @JamieMcGee_. Reach Joey Garrison at 615-259-8236 and on Twitter @Joeygarrison.

By the numbers

3,200 miles of Google's fiber-optic cable is planned for Nashville.

90 percent is to be installed via pole attachment.

90,000: Number of Davidson County utility poles

1,000 to 1,500: Number of pole applications that Google submits on a weekly basis

A few hundred: Number of poles made ready for Google Fiber

Source: Google Fiber