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• <br />• <br />• <br />Deciding whether to continue to rent or to buy our own facility is the question that will need to be <br />answered soon. Line items have been created, in both budgets, for funding to put toward <br />possible facility changes and /or improvements. <br />t <br />Our equipment purchase plan remains on track. The immediate goals remain to replace the <br />Amiga graphics computers, move to a digital format, purchase and outfit an improved <br />production truck, and rebuild master control. <br />Our intent is to be extremely conservative in our equipment purchases in 2001. Short of <br />impossible to predict breakdowns, we plan to buy no equipment in 2001, other than completing <br />the permanent news set for City Scope. Our next steps into the digital format and the purchase <br />and outfitting of a new truck will both be extremely expensive ventures. A large amount of <br />money will need to be accumulated, over the next several years, in order to make those <br />purchases possible. <br />Franchise renewal also affects our move into the digital format, as having MediaOne outfit <br />master control with new equipment is a part of our renewal proposal. If replacement of master <br />control equipment is included in the franchise renewal, we could begin the process in 2001. We <br />would start with an upgrade to our Scala graphics system, audio equipment, and some digital <br />machine control cards and digital playback decks. Introducing digital equipment in master <br />control will dictate when we can buy digital mastering equipment for other areas of our facility. <br />PEG <br />We are currently at the maximum PEG Fee level allowed by our memorandum of <br />understanding. We are, however, allowed to increase that level annually to cover cost of living <br />increases. We suggest doing that this year, and every year thereafter. The average CPI for <br />1999 was 2.2 %. Increasing the PEG Fee by this amount results in a 5 cent increase per <br />subscriber, per month, to $2.30. <br />Purchasing and outfitting a new truck and moving into the digital format are hugely expensive <br />undertakings. Frankly, without increased monetary support, either from additional PEG Fees <br />and /or donations from franchise fees, they're going to be very difficult to accomplish. In addition <br />to suggesting increasing the PEG Fee by 2.2 %, two new line items have been included in the <br />Cable Commission budget, an equipment fund and a building fund transfer, for your <br />consideration. <br />6 <br />