CCM, which is headed by a former principal in 62nd Street Broadcasting, is buying talker WVOM (103.9 Howland) and adult AC WBYA (101.7 Searsport) from Jerry Evans' Moon Song Broadcasting, and combining them with three stations from Mark Osborne and Natalie Knox: hot AC WKSQ (94.5 Ellsworth), country WLKE (99.1 Bar Harbor), and country WBFB (104.7 Belfast). We hear the price on the Osborne/Knox stations was $8.2 million; no word yet on the Evans properties. The usual "no format changes are planned" applies here; we'll wait and see.
From way up north in Aroostook County comes word that the long-running simulcast between talkers WEGP (1390 Presque Isle) and WREM (710 Monticello) has ended, effective February 1. That's when Al Weiner broke WREM away with its own rock format, largely automated. Those with long memories will recall WREM was running a rock format, staffed mostly by volunteers, until the WEGP simulcast began in the mid-nineties. Down the road from the WREM tower, we're told a second transmitter is coming on line for Weiner's shortwave outlet, WBCQ.
And there's a new morning guy coming to classic rock WBHG (101.5 Meredith) up by Lake Winnipesaukee. Trey McKain was working at WKKG in Columbus, Indiana.
Citadel closed on Worcester's WXLO (104.5 Fitchburg) and WORC-FM (98.9 Webster) this week, and promptly replaced GM Steve Gallagher with Joe Flynn, formerly sales manager at Citadel's WWLI in Providence. WORC-FM PD Pete Falconi adds acting PD for WXLO to his responsibilities.
Up in Haverhill, Jerry Mason is out as music director and promotions manager at WXRV (92.5); no replacement has been named yet.
In Greenwich, WGCH (1490) wants to move its tower from the current site off West Putnam Avenue to a new stick near the North Street School, and amazingly, the school board is playing along -- sort of. They're trying to craft wording that will prevent WGCH from using its new tower for anything but AM broadcasts.
Over in Hartford, WRCH/WZMX GM Jodi Long is getting a promotion: she moves up to VP/GM of Infinity's Promotions Group.
Squ-e-e-e-e-ze!: That translator we were criticizing a few months back, W203BB (88.5 Norfolk), is now on the air, relaying KAWZ Twin Falls, Idaho from an antenna above a dry-cleaning shop in the Strawberry Hill Shopping Center on US 1. The word from our Connecticut spies is that W203BB's signal holds for about a mile in each direction before being squashed by co-channel WVOF (88.5 Fairfield) and WEDW (88.5 Stamford).
While we're in Syracuse, WBXL (90.5 Baldwinsville) had to postpone its anniversary celebration this week. The station was planning a 25-hour radiothon, but the closing of Baldwinsville High School Friday morning put an end to those plans. The new date for the radiothon is March 3.
Translator clutter: Pensacola's WPCS wants an 89.5 in Macedon, just east of Rochester -- and way too close to WMHN (89.3 Webster), WEOS (89.7 Geneva), and WITR (89.7 Henrietta) for comfort, we're guessing.
After forty years at 2077 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo's WBEN (930) and WMJQ (102.5) are moving out this weekend. They'll be the first of Sinclair's Buffalo stations to move into the new group HQ off Maple Road in suburban Amherst. The stations, then WBEN AM/FM, moved into the North Buffalo facility with what was then WBEN-TV (now WIVB, Channel 4) in 1960, taking over the space that had been built by NBC for erstwhile O&O WBUF-TV (Channel 17). WIVB remains at Elmwood Avenue.
Late word from downstate is that some changes are in the works at talker WNEW (102.7 New York): Steve Mason is out of his morning gig, pursuing syndication at night instead; Don and Mike, via syndication, are reportedly being added; and Jeremy Coleman is reportedly on his way up from sister Infinity outlet WJFK (106.7 Manassas VA) in Washington DC to be WNEW's next PD. More, no doubt, next week...
That's it for this week...see you next Friday!