That happens with the sale of the original Construction Permit at 99.7, in Ashland, Kentucky. This morning’s Taylor on Radio-Info reports that “Kentucky-based group owner Lynn Martin acquired the permit for a new Class A licensed to Westwood, KY at the FCC’s Auction #62” in 2006. Three years later, the permit is still unbuilt and the company had a May 23 expiration date. So it sold the CP to Serge Martin for $110,000. That’s half what Lynn Martin paid three years ago. TRI notes “… the sale is being done for just $10,000 cash, and the rest in the form of a promissory note.” A recent FCC policy change allows the buyer – as long as it’s a qualified entity – an additional 18 months to build.
Let's all welcome Dr. Serge "Martin" - an optometrist in TN with no other broadcast interests - to the market.
Lynn "Martin" sold the station at a "loss" and the only promise Doctor "Martin" had to make for the "purchase" was
$10,000 in "escrow".
The loophole for an 18-month extension to the construction-permit closes with the FCC on June 1.
The only way to exercise the loophole is to have a "sale" to another party on the FCC database before May 31.
The FCC then grants an extension to the new "owner" and this party has either 18 months to sell or build.
This loophole closes after that 18 month term and it either has to be built or licensed-and-operating by that deadline.
------------------------ Cameron Smith - CSRE®
Senior Member - SBE 68 Birmingham
Senior Digital Product Manager - Hibbett Sports|City Gear
Just looking via Google earth (and not knowing where westwood is), It kinda looks like
that the hills just back of Catlettsburg would be the place. South Point hill might
be an option, if I knew where westwood was. Another tower to light the night sky.
"Everyone Should be aware that you're just a screen grab away from infamy."
Has to stay 45 miles from 99.5 in Pt. Pleasant, unless they start drastically cutting power or use a DA. And if they did that, reduces signal drastically over Huntington.
Tom Taggart wrote:Has to stay 45 miles from 99.5 in Pt. Pleasant, unless they start drastically cutting power or use a DA. And if they did that, reduces signal drastically over Huntington.
my assumption has always been that Lynn would be using this as a satellite to Rock 105...though the new call letters don't support this theory...the geographics do.
WKLC doesn't need signal in Huntington. 105 already booms in there! where they need it is areas of the Huntington/Ashland metro where it doesn't...like where we live near the Paul Coffey Industrial Park. In terms of this board, west of the Great South Point Radio Barrier!
Where Lynn really messed up was not picking up 105.7 when Bruce Leslie sold it. That would be a perfect complement, down to the dial position!!!
- the life and health insurance broker formerly known as Joel Jackson
Interesting that a search for Serge Martin Enterprises on Google retrieves a bunch of nursing home information in Murfreesboro, TN and optometrist ratings from his patients . Of course, a Google search for me would return some jacked up stuff too.
The Report and Order that created the allotment specified the transmitter location with then-Class A parameters. Martin's granted CP echoed the site back (1.7 km to spare towards Point Pleasant) with 3 kW at 300 feet. The rest of the story:
4/7 - license to cover request filed using temporary structure (for economic reasons) at licensed coordinates.
4/8 - silent STA requested, noting that program test authority began 3/38 and station taken silent for economic reasons on 4/8.
6/8 - license to cover granted.
If 99.7 could be positioned for decent Huntington coverage, a WMXE Classic Hits simulcast might make more sense to LM than making this a 105 repeater. 100.9 more than doubled their 12+ numbers in the Spring 2011 Charleston book (3.4 to 7.0), and managed to clobber KAZ's former Classic Top 40 format and push them to Classic Rock. And that was Class A versus Class B. The Mix on 99.7 might give B97.1 a run for their money.
Most of all, it could make sense to sell both 105.1 & 100.9/99.7 as both Charleston AND Huntington stations. The WWQB calls don't support this guess, but who pays attention to calls anyway?
Or maybe LM should get it on the air and then sell to the 99.7 Pirate. If the pirate's last name is Martin, then he could probably pick up the signal for $100 or less...