Community Access TV channels 18-19-20

[AdeleHouston]

The format of Community Access TV in Wallingford is unlike any other Town in CT. Most taxpayers do not know that approx $125,000 of the town budget is used to run Channel 20 as a Local Government TV station on the Government Access designated channel. Channel 18 (also known as WPAA) has an annual budget of $72,000 the source of which is Comcast cable fees. More than 30% of this budget goes to leasing downtown space. Channel 19 is within the BOE budget because the use is not extended to life-time learning content. (AT&T U-verse fees will be part of WPAA income in 2008.)

People converting to U-verse from AT&T do not know they do not have Community Access Channels. And Direct TV or closed TV systems like Ashler Village do not have Community Channels. U=verse will not have the same channel designation for Community Access Programming. (The clock has started on the requirement to have Community Access Programming (120 days from granting of a franchise, which happened on Nov. 1st) on U-verse.

So why does this matter? Community Access TV belongs to all the people of Wallingford. Wallingford Public Access Association, Inc. (WPAA) is a local 501© 3 organization whose mission is to help preserve First Amendment Freedoms in the Town of Wallingford CT by managing resources available to the people of Wallingford to cablecast their interests and opinions on their Community TV Channel 18. Anyone can use the facilities and resources of WPAA to create a video program. Anyone means YOU. Consider participating in the Community Building TV Projects launched 12.7.07 by contacting wpaa@7Towntv.org with pictures and stories about travel, pets, food and books.

[denisrouimette@yahoo.com]

The town own empty property and directly or indirectly rent building. If the televisions stations move to the old American Legion Building every citizen of Wallingford would benefit from a social and economical point of view.
That is good idea to use this building before the only that could do is to demolish another building that is part of Wallingford memories.
Regards,
Denis

[David Burghardt]

The location would be a great plus for WPAA in terms of LIVE Programing. Celebrate Wallingford, Memorial Day Parade, Summer Sound Concerts, Frosty Parade, Halloween Parade, Seasons of Celebration Events or New Events created for cable right on the Parade Grounds. As a life long Wallingford Resident and a viewer of Community Access viewer since 1974 and user since 1982 I can see endless benefits. Community Access is dear to my heart on all 3 levels. Public, Educational and Government. Having been involved in over thousands hours of programing, I hope this idea to secure the American Legion location can be explored seriously.

[Michael Citak]

I just wanted to put in my two cents, and weight in on the AL building. Being a Wallingford resident since birth, and just recently discovering Channel 18 as a way to express myself with my own tv show "Creation", I think that the use of the AL building for WPAA would be great. While the downtown location is nice, much of the time, the "store front" is blacked out with the curtain, and the tv in the window is off. Compared to other communities, the Wallingford Public Access station as of now really doesn't have a broad spectrum of original programming. Maybe it's the location. If WPAA moves to the AL building, then they will have the desired space needed to produce shows more efficiently and will benefit from less congested street parking.