Court says Calgary rights of way bylaw does not apply to telcos

By Ahmad Hathout EDMONTON – A Calgary bylaw that sought to regulate the relationship between private entities and the city for access to municipal rights-of-way is not binding on telecom companies, the Alberta Court of Appeal said Thursday. The highest court in the province upheld, 2-1, a lower court’s determination that the terms of the bylaw be amended to remove “telecommunications services” from the definition of “utility provider” because telecommunications is the jurisdiction of the federal government. The bylaw forced entities to get – in some cases multiple – permits to construct within rights-of-way. The bylaw effectively gave the city...