Dawson City, Yukon's publicly-owned TV service holds on a bit longer

Dawson City, Yukon's publicly-owned TV service is loved by some, while others see it as an outdated service. But one thing seems clear: it's not going anywhere just yet.

In September, the town announced its plan to shut down the service by year's end, citing rising operating costs and a dwindling subscriber base.

The town's chief administrative officer Dave Henderson has said the service was losing between $30,000 and $40,000 per year and that deficit has to be made up with tax hikes or service cuts. The town also had to put $100,000 into capital upgrades for the system last year, and with just 130 subscribers remaining, Henderson said the writing was on the wall.

The plan was to cut the service on Dec. 31. 

But Henderson said the previous mayor and council never managed to pass the resolution before their term was up. So now it's up to the new council whether they go ahead with the shutdown.

Henderson said the new council now needs to be "brought up to speed" on the issue, including how the service affects the town's budget. That means the Dec. 31 shut-off date isn't going to work.

Henderson said it's likely that council will discuss the issue in January, and he suspects a shutdown date would likely be set for sometime in the spring — though it's not clear at this point.

"If council votes 'yes' on it, then a shutdown date will be set possibly in late April or May, or maybe something farther out," Henderson said in an email to CBC News. "If council votes 'no' to a shutdown date, then we will have to decide if the city is transferring cable lines to the new poles Yukon Energy has put in."

That means the town would be investing even more money into the current cable system, according to Henderson.

"A shutdown date will come back to council for consideration at a future date," said Henderson. "But we are definitely not shutting it down on December 31, 2024."