View Channel 615 Slide Show Online

Click here to view Ch. 615 from within City Hall

SPB-TV is the local government access cable channel. Channel 615 in St. Pete Beach broadcasts a community bulletin board, which includes information of public interest and notices of all public meetings and hearings.

All City Commission meetings are broadcast live at 7:00 p.m. on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of the month and rebroadcast on Thursday following the meeting at 7:00 p.m. and on the next Saturday at Noon.  A majority of the monthly and quarterly City Board and Committee meetings are also broadcast live at the time of the meeting.

For further information regarding Channel 615, please call the City Clerk's Office at 727.363.9220.

IMPORTANT NOTICE REGARDING FUTURE OF CHANNEL 15:
Bright House Networks has announced that effective December 11, 2007, Channel 15 will be relocated to a higher digital tier on the cable lineup. This lineup change will also affect county government channels currently located on Channel 18. The change is affecting all city and county governments in the entire bay area.

The new channel will be on the digital tier, above Channel 99. Officials with Bright House have informed the city that they will offer a free converter box for those who still want to access government channels but do not want to pay an up charge for the digital cable. If the conversion box is not free, the converter box will cost $7 per month per television. This includes all televisions in government buildings.

Due to a new state law which changed the rules regulating cable companies, it appears there is very little the city and local county governments can do to prevent the change from taking place. The law known as the “Consumer Choice Act of 2007” gives all negotiation power with local cable companies to the state and prohibits counties and municipalities from negotiating terms and conditions. Several consumer groups have raised concern with the state over the issue but at this time it appears there is very little we can do as a city to prevent the change from taking place. Bright House says that the change is needed due to the fact that the federal government has mandated all broadcast networks be in high definition. Many networks, including Channel 15 at this time, are currently broadcast in analog. A number of cities are discussing ways to get Bright House to reconsider this decision. In the meantime consumers should contact Dan Ballister, Vice President of Community Affairs, at 727.329.2925 to let them know how they will be affected by such a change.

Looking to the future, it is very likely that city government television will no longer be broadcast by local cable companies past the year 2012. The law no longer makes it a requirement for cable companies to carry us on their channel lineup. The cities and counties are working together to formulate a mutually beneficial plan prior to 2012 so that we do not lose this critical communication component.

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