Richmond Radio: Alpha Media Selling WBBT, WWLB

Commonwealth Public Broadcasting Corp., the owner of WCVE public television and radio stations in Richmond, plans to buy two additional FM radio stations in the region and reformat its news and music programming.

According to Richmond.com, the nonprofit corporation, which brands itself as the Community Idea Stations, said it has agreed to buy radio stations WBBT 107.3 FM and WWLB 93.1 FM, from Portland, Ore.-based Alpha Media.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The acquisition must be approved by the Federal Communications Commission.

Commonwealth Public Broadcasting said it has submitted an application to the FCC and expects to complete the acquisition in the first quarter of 2018.

When the acquisition is done, CPBC said it will switch its WCVE-FM radio station to an all-news and talk format, while the two acquired stations will simulcast exclusively music programs, focusing mainly on classical and jazz.

WWLB 93.1 FM (5.2 Kw) Red=Local Coverage Area

WWLB currently is a classic country music station licensed in Ettrick, while WBBT is an ’80s hits station licensed in Powhatan. The call letters of both stations likely will change.

WBBT 107.3 FM (1.2 Kw)

In a statement, Curtis Monk, president and chief executive officer of Commonwealth Public Broadcasting, said the deal “fulfills a long-held objective, enabling us to meet the dual listening demands of our radio audience.”

The acquisition comes about nine months after CPBC announced it had received almost $182 million in proceeds from the sale of broadcast spectrum as part of a national auction of airwave space managed by the FCC.

Commonwealth Public Broadcasting said it would use the proceeds to establish a foundation that will support its local programming and community service mission. Some proceeds from the sale were used for the acquisition of the two radio stations.

“It is a rare opportunity for new frequencies to open up in Richmond,” said Bill Miller, CPBC’s vice president and general manager for radio. “We are just happy to be in a position at this point, thanks to the spectrum auction proceeds, to take advantage of this.”