t/ Communications JOSEPH J. STARSICK, JR. Associate General Counsel - Southeast Region Frontier 1500 MacCorkle Ave., S.E. Charleston, West Virginia 25314 (304) 344-7644 Joseph.Starsick@,FTR.com September 1 3,20 1 0 Via Hand Delivery Sandra S. Squire Executive Secretary Public Service Commission 201 Brooks Street Charleston, West Virginia 25323 Re: Case No. 07-01 87-T-C Citizens Telecommunications Company of West Virginia, d/b/a Frontier Communications v. Snowshoe Mountain, Inc. d/b/a Snowshoe Resort Dear Ms. Squire: Please find enclosed for filing the original plus 12 copies of the Frontier s Response To Petition To Intervene Of William E, McHenry and/or Allegheny Springs Homeowners Association in the above-referenced matter. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Very truly yours, J JSj r/sc Enclosure (State Bar I.D. #3576) cc: William E. McHenry Robert R. Rodecker, Esquire Christopher Howard, Esquire John B. Adams, Esquire Fred C. Sayre, Esquire. Angela McCall Frontier West Virginia Inc.
PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION OF WEST VIRGINIA CHARLESTON CASE NO. 07-0187-T-C CITIZENS TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY OF WEST VIRGINIA, d/b/a FRONTIER COMMUNICATIONS, a corporation, Complainant, vs. SNOWSHOE MOUNTAIN, INC. d/b/a SNOWSHOE RESORT, a corporation, Defendant. FRONTIER S RESPONSE TO PETITION TO INTERVENE OF WILLIAM E. MCHENRY AND/OR ALLEGHENY SPRINGS HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATION Citizens Telecommunications Company of West Virginia d/b/a Frontier Communications ( Frontier ) responds the petition to intervene of William McHenry and/or Allegheny Springs Home Owners Association, as follows: 1. In reliance on the representations of Snowshoe Mountain, Inc. d/b/a Snowshoe Resort ( Snowshoe ) that it is not and will not act as a properly certificated public utility, Frontier already has invested in substantial facilities and engineering to serve the Snowshoe exchange, including Allegheny Springs. Frontier s investment includes a metaswitch to be installed to serve Snowshoe costing approximately $80,000. Total investment to date - on which Frontier is recovering no revenue - is approximately $100,000, Frontier s work to serve 1
Snowshoe continues to be ongoing, and Frontier will invest substantial additional sums for OSP construction and Switch upgrades, 2. As pointed out by Snowshoe Resort in its opposition to the petition to intervene, it simply is too late for an intervention to revisit the issues already decided by the Commission in this proceeding. 3. However, Frontier is not entirely unsympathetic to Dr. McHenry s concerns. To the extent, if any, that Snowshoe has failed to honor any obligations that it has to notify its customers, including the homeowners associations, it should fulfill those obligations immediately. For its own part, Frontier has widely distributed brochures to prospective customers explaining its new high speed Internet and telephone services. 4. Moreover, contrary to Dr. McHenry s apparent misimpression, Frontier s telephone service will be less expensive than Snowshoe Resort s existing offering once one takes into account the federal subscriber line charge, 9-1-1 fee, and Telephone Relay Service which Snowshoe Resort should have been charging and would have had to charge on a going-forward basis had Snowshoe Resort decided to become a certificated carrier. 5. However, Frontier cannot complete its work without Snowshoe Resort s cooperation. Among other things, Snowshoe must allow Frontier to construct facilities, Snowshoe must grant any and all appropriate rights of way, and Snowshoe must properly notify its customers, including homeowners associations, if it has not done so already. 6. Snowshoe Resort s prompt cooperation is crucial to allowing Frontier to finish the necessary work and begin to serve its new customers in the Snowshoe exchange in advance of the winter skiing season. Frontier will continue to work with Snowshoe Resort and will keep the Commission and the Commission s Staff informed of the progress. 2
7. Allowing Dr. McHenry s intervention at this time, however, serves no useful purpose. Snowshoe Resort clearly does not want to act as a public utility. The Commission can require Snowshoe Resort to obtain a certificate if Snowshoe Resort wishes to undertake the duties of providing a public utility service, but the Commission cannot force Snowshoe Resort to undertake those duties if it is unwilling to do so. On the other hand, Frontier remains ready and willing to provide new services to Snowshoe customers, including heretofore unavailable high speed Internet access. The Commission accordingly should deny Dr. McHenry s petition to intervene. CITIZENS TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY OF WEST VIRGINIA D/B/A FRONTIER COMMUNICATIONS By counsel, Associate General Counsel - Southeast Region Frontier Communications 1500 MacCorkle Avenue, S.E. Charleston, West Virginia 25314 (304) 344-7644 Joseph. Starsick@,FTR.com 3
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I, Joseph J. Starsick, Jr., Counsel for Citizens Telecommunications Company Of West Virginia d/b/a Frontier Communications, do hereby certify that I have served the foregoing Frontier s Response To Petition To Intervene Of William E. McHenry and/or Allegheny Springs Homeowners Association upon the parties of record by depositing a true copy thereof in an envelope in the United States mail, return receipt requested, this 13th day September 2010, addressed as follows: William E. McHenry 81 1 Monument Avenue Woodbridge, Virginia 22 1 9 I Robert R. Rodecker, Esquire Post Office Box 3713 Charleston, West Virginia 25337-3713 Christopher Howard, Esquire Legal Division Public Service Commission of West Virginia 201 Brooks Street Charleston, West Virginia 25301