5.25 Franchises.

Every franchise, contract, or privilege for a public utility to construct, maintain, or operate any railroad or other means of transportation in or over any street or highway, or to lay pipes or conduits, or erect poles or wires or other structures in or across any street or highway for the transmission of gas, electricity, or other commodity or utility, or for the use of public property or places now or hereafter belonging to the city, shall be granted by the city council pursuant to ordinance or the general laws of the State upon such terms and conditions as the city council deems proper.

No franchise, privilege, or contract shall be construed to impair or affect the right of the city to acquire the property of the grantee either by purchase or through the exercise of the right of eminent domain.