Pole not up to code?

[jshaver]

I am in San Francisco and there is one utility pole between me and Sonic Fiber. Sonic sent a crew out a year or so ago and what they told me is that the pole is not up to code (I think that is the way thy put it) and so they are not allowed to touch it. As I understand it, if Sonic was allowed to use that pole, they would be happy to do the install.

Has anyone had luck getting this sort of thing resolved(presumably by PG&E)? Ideas?

Obviously this is almost certainly not a Sonic issue, just figured someone here might be able to point me in the right direction.

Thanks

[loherj]

Hello,

Taking a look at your account and the serviceability check we performed back then. It isn't so much that the pole isn't up to code. While the pole may be a contributing factor due to it being overloaded, needing to be replaced, or even serviced so that utilities can be attached, the main issue is aerial trespassing. Aerial trespassing prevents us from running our infrastructure over a certain distance, which isn't the space above your address that we are servicing. So, this pole that needs to be replaced could be what is needed in order for us to service your address without aerial trespassing, but based on the notes, it seems as though your address is unserviceable due to aerial trespassing.

However, to answer your question, yes, typically, PG&E or your city would be the best route for someone to speak to regarding getting the pole checked out.

[jshaver]

Thanks for the reply, as I understand it, there are two ways for Sonic to reach me (without major work):
1) Through my back yard that requires going over a neighbor
2) From the front, that passes by this pole.

My neighbor won't give permission to cross their property (that's the trespassing note).

I was told by the crews that they can't just "skip" the pole in front and they are not allowed to use it due to overloading or something else. As I understand the property lines, coming in via the front would not cross any private property - only city property. As far as I can tell, the distance to the sonic line is basically the same in front or back, but I guess because the pole is there they can't bypass it?

Thanks

[loherj]

Thank you for the follow-up.

1. Passing through your neighbor's yard would be aerial trespassing. Even if they give permission, aerial trespassing still occurs, which prevents service delivery.

2. Yes, we can not skip a pole because the span of our line connecting to the poles has specific guidelines we have to abide by. We can not skip the pole, and therefore, this leaves the address unserviceable.

As a means of clarity, even if the pole becomes viable, this still isn't a guarantee we can service your address. Just that the likelihood becomes greater since, previously, the assumption was that the pole was viable and we could service your address. There may be other factors that come into play, such as infrastructure layout and other obstacles, but based on the present information, the pole becoming viable is the best starting point.

[jshaver]

Thanks. That is all what I figured (although was under the impression that with owner approval we could overfly their yard - but that's wasn't actually on the table anyway.

I will poke around more and see if there is someone reasonable to reach out to about the pole.

Thanks