Threatens to Cut Firm’s Contract : Lawndale Tunes In to Cable TV Problems

Lawndale Councilman Harold E. Hofmann swung into action the other night when a council meeting his family had been watching on television abruptly went off the air, leaving the screen blank.

Hofmann called several phone numbers listed for Paragon Communications, the Torrance-based cable television company that carries recorded meetings of the Lawndale City Council and Planning Commission under a 15-year franchise agreement.

Disgusted after repeatedly getting no answer “after many, many rings,” Hofmann finally reached an answering service operator but got no help until he identified himself as a councilman. At last, he was put through to a Paragon official who sent a technician to the studio to get the program back on the air.

In the 45 minutes or so it took for the broadcast to resume, Hofmann said, several Lawndale residents called him to complain, and he assumes that many others simply turned off the television and went to bed.

Taking Action

This was no isolated incident, Hofmann said. The interruption of City Council programming is so typical that the City Council last week decided to take strong action against Paragon.

In a letter drafted by City Atty. David J. Aleshire and approved by the council last Thursday, the city warned Paragon that it is in violation of its franchise agreement. If Paragon does not correct certain problems, the city will start shortening the firm’s 15-year contract, Aleshire said.

Mark Mangiola, vice president and general manager of Paragon, denied that Paragon has breached its contract. In an interview this week, he said Paragon rarely has complaints from its approximately 3,000 Lawndale customers, who receive sports and news cable channels as well as broadcasts of city meetings for $12.95 a month. Paragon has about 53,000 customers in the South Bay.

Incident Acknowledged

Mangiola said that the only complaints he knows of from Lawndale involved a switching-equipment malfunction about three weeks ago. He acknowledged that in that incident, Paragon’s maintenance procedures may not have been “up to snuff.”

Mangiola said complaints have principally been from city officials rather than the public. Viewer surveys in Lawndale show that “nobody’s watching” the broadcasts of city meetings, he said.

However, a number of Lawndale residents at council meetings over the past year have complained about Paragon’s service. For example, at the last meeting, resident Steve Mino complained about an incident in which the same taped segment was repeated over and over. He said that when he complained to Paragon, he got a 43-cent refund.

In other cities, including Torrance and Hawthorne, residents have been upset over Paragon’s recent elimination of Prime Ticket from its cable channels. This eliminated local viewing of Lakers basketball games and other events. Mangiola said Monday that Paragon is negotiating with Prime Ticket in a dispute over the cost of the cable service. It will be restored if Paragon can reach an agreement with Prime Ticket, he said.

Violations Charged

In the Lawndale City Council’s strongly worded letter to Paragon, Aleshire said “Paragon Communications has been and is now in violation of material provisions” of its franchise agreement. If Paragon does not remedy the problems, he warned, Lawndale will reduce its contract one day for every day Paragon is in default.

This would cost Paragon about $3,000 a day, city officials said.

Aleshire said the city has “extensive documentation” from several public hearings showing that Paragon has breached its contract in the 18 months since it took over the cable system from Group W. The city notified Paragon of numerous problems after a formal public hearing last February, Aleshire said, but “9 months later none of these deficiencies has been corrected.”

Aleshire said Paragon has breached its contract on several matters:

It has failed to provide three auxiliary sites where live programming can be broadcast in Lawndale.

It has not provided a staff person to handle complaints from customers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, as provided in the contract.

It has not conducted training workshops to teach community members how to prepare video programming.

Service on Channel 60, which broadcasts city government meetings, has been “inadequate.”

Mangiola said he had not received the city attorney’s letter with specific allegations, but as a general response he said: “I am a little amazed the city even complained.”

Other than complaints from Lawndale city officials, he has not heard of problems in Paragon’s service in Lawndale, he said.

Hofmann said that although council meetings may not attract a massive TV audience, it is an important part of Paragon’s responsibility and contract obligations. He said he strongly supports the council’s letter for Paragon: “I believe the only way we are going to get Paragon to straighten up is by touching their pocketbooks.”