Whenever a municipality obtains a grant under this chapter for the construction, rebuilding, expansion or acquisition of sewers or other pollution abatement facilities and where the carrying out of such construction, rebuilding, expansion or acquisition requires the temporary or permanent readjustment, relocation or removal of a public service facility from a street or public right-of-way, the municipality shall issue an appropriate order to the company owning or operating such facility and such company shall permanently or temporarily readjust, relocate or remove such facility promptly in accordance with such order, provided an equitable share of the cost of such readjustment, relocation or removal of said public service facility, including the cost of installing and constructing a facility equal in capacity in a new location, shall be borne by the municipality. Such equitable share shall be one hundred per cent of such cost after the deductions hereinafter provided. In establishing the equitable share of the cost to be borne by the municipality, there shall be deducted from the cost of the readjusted, relocated or removed facilities a sum based on a consideration of the value of materials salvaged from existing installations, the cost of the original installation, the life expectancy of the original facility and the unexpired term of such useful life. For the purposes of determining the equitable share of the cost of such readjustment, relocation or removal, the books and records of the company shall be available for the inspection of the municipality. When any facility is removed from a street or public right-of-way to a private right-of-way, the municipality shall not pay for such right-of-way. If the municipality and the company owning or operating such facility cannot agree upon the share of the cost to be borne by the municipality, either may apply to the superior court for the judicial district in which the street or public right-of-way is situated or, if the court is not in session, to any judge thereof for a determination of the cost to be borne by the municipality, and such court or judge after causing notice of the pendency of such application to be given to the other party, shall appoint a state referee to make such determination. Such referee, having given at least ten days’ notice to the parties interested of the time and place of the hearing, shall hear both parties, shall take such testimony as such referee may deem material and shall thereupon determine the amount of the cost to be borne by the municipality and forthwith report to the court. If the report is accepted by the court, such determination shall, subject to right of appeal as in civil actions, be conclusive upon such parties. As used in this section, “public service facility” includes any sewer, pipe, main, conduit, cable, wire, tower, building or a utility appliance owned or operated by an electric distribution, gas, telephone, water or community antenna television service company.