Should the Village of Mamaroneck Save LMC?

by Kathy Savolt -

It was standing room only at the April 13, 2026 meeting of the Board of Trustees (BOT) as word spread that the Village of Mamaroneck was thinking about reducing its payment to LMC Media (LMC) through its current budget process.  Although the Tentative Budget showed the same payment amount as the current year ($250,000), the Village had sent a draft contract to LMC with a lesser amount proposed as minimum compensation for services provided ($90,350) with additional sums for “anticipated programming” that summed to $80,920.

This brought out a room full of LMC supporters and thirty commentors, including Stephen, an LMC employee and the self-described “guy in the back of the room” managing the live feed at every BOT meeting.

Background

To understand the current situation, a little history might help.  Although cable television was invented in 1948, it wasn’t until the late 1970s-early 1980s that it came to the Mamaroneck area.  It was a new idea that promoted public access programming and required new thinking on the part of the elected officials.

Franchise Fees

By law, cable providers are required to pay a franchise fee to the local municipalities as compensation for using public property for their cabling.  Franchise fees are governed by Section 622 of the Cable Communications Act of 1984 which states that municipalities may be entitled to a maximum of 5% of gross revenues derived from the operation of the cable system in order to provide cable services such as public, educational and government (PEG) TV channels. Gross revenue from any other service is not included.

The Birth of LMC and the Board of Control

The sequence of events in the early 1980s are a little muddy at this point but the outcome is very clear.  In the spirit of tri-municipal cooperation, the Villages of Mamaroneck and Larchmont, along with the Town of Mamaroneck, worked together to negotiate the contract with TCI, the provider at that time.  To provide the PEG channels and programming, they created LMC-TV, a not-for-profit corporation, and an entity called the Board of Control (BOC) to manage the contract and the franchise fees including negotiating with the cable company.  At the time this arrangement was unique as most municipalities began to broadcast PEG programming under their own umbrella and it remains just as unique today, perhaps even more so given the growth of LMC’s programming.

The BOC consisted of one elected official from each municipality to be chosen by the municipality.  The first director of LMC was the Village Manager of Mamaroneck, Joe Fraioli.

Follow the Money

In the beginning, the cable provider was apparently unable to parse its subscribers into one of the three municipal boxes.  They had data by zip codes and there are largely two zip codes and three municipalities with non-matching boundaries.  The solution was to pay all the franchise fees to the BOC which then doled them out based on population data.  A 2016 Annual Report (earliest on their website) shows LMC received $605,000 from the BOC that year.  It appears the BOC paid LMC directly.  The 2024 Annual Report shows $682,537 from the BOC and $90,350 from Larchmont, the sum of which represented 64% of LMC’s revenue.

It is not clear at this time if LMC received 100% of the franchise fees or if the municipalities ever received a percentage from the BOC.  At the BOT meeting, Kathleen Gill, Village Manager, reported that “no one forwarded 100% of the franchise fees.”  She cited that the Village retained an average of 25% of the fees.

Tri-municipal Cooperation Falls Apart

The Village of Larchmont was the first to leave.  They apparently wanted control over their share of the franchise fees.  In 2022, they pulled out of the BOC and negotiated a separate contract with LMC for services to Larchmont.

This was possible because the two current providers, Cablevision and Verizon, were able to identify their subscribers by municipality.

In 2023, the Town of Mamaroneck followed suit and, according to County Legislator Anant Nambiar who was a Town Councilperson at the time, negotiated a contract with LMC and agreed to pay them $200,000/year.

This left the Village of Mamaroneck as “the last man standing” as one commenter described it at the BOT meeting.

VOM Payments

Reflecting the demise of the BOC, Revenue and Expense lines for the franchise fees did not appear in VOM budgets until the FY 2024-2025 budget which included a revenue projection of $200,000.  No corresponding expense was budgeted. 

Actual figures in the current Tentative budget show that the Village paid 100% of the fees received to LMC ($172,339 in 2024/25 and $574,659 in 2025/26).  There was a lag in receipts so the average for the two years is a more appropriate indicator - $373,499.

Gill cited a 2023 Resolution by the BOT as the justification for the payments (see HERE). This resolution was to establish an internal trust fund for the franchise fees and is silent on payment to LMC.  Since there is no contract with LMC, it is unclear if the Village ever established a legal mechanism through which to pay them.

Ongoing Negotiations with LMC

Kathleen Gill began the BOT meeting by explaining that VOM and LMC were in contract negotiation during which she would not normally speak when negotiations were ongoing.  However, because of the “chatter,” she explained that VOM was originally one of three members of the BOC and no one forwarded 100% of their franchise fees to LMC.  The BOC dissolved after the Village of Larchmont and Town of Mamaroneck pulled out and negotiated separate contracts with LMC and neither is paying 100% of the fees they receive.  Gill said she sent an initial proposal to LMC and “expected a conversation.”  Her next steps are to continue negotiations.

Public Outcry at the Meeting

Thirty individuals addressed the BOT ranging from LMC employees and board members to hosts of LMC programming, podcasters who use the LMC studios and members of the public who watch LMC programming.  These speakers demographically represented the community on several indicators, notably age as they ranged from grandparents to high school students to a 4-year-old fan of LMC Kids.  Most of the speakers strongly encouraged continued financial support of LMC citing various examples of their programming and services.  Many mentioned LMC to be an integral part of our community and one that brings us together.

County Legislator Anant Nambiar spoke saying “I see both sides.”  He mentioned how he and his family had benefitted from LMC and recognized its uniqueness while also acknowledging the difficult task for the BOT to determine priorities including flooding.  He reminded the BOT and the audience that “there is no right answer” and urged the parties to “find something that works for both sides.”

LMC Executive Director Matt Sullivan

 LMC Executive Director Matt Sullivan said that LMC programming was the voice for thousands of residents – which would be reduced or diluted without funding – and would be the weakening of the public’s voice.

After the public speakers, Trustee Dan Kushnick stated that the BOT members supported LMC and he hoped both sides would negotiate in good faith.  Then he wondered “if there was this kind of uproar when Larchmont and the Town of Mamaroneck cut their funding?”

Next Steps

Gill stated that negotiations will continue.  None of the LMC representatives included that action in their remarks.  The Village budget must be finalized by April 30, 2026.