BobOnTheJob said:
There was a big fight with property owners adjacent when they found out about the plans. They were never able to get zoning approved and it was scrapped.
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There was a big fight with property owners adjacent when they found out about the plans. They were never able to get zoning approved and it was scrapped.
Does anyone know if Columbus is the largest market (or at least largest non-embedded market) that lacks a 50kw AM? I believe it is, but I'm not sure and I'm too lazy to do the research at the moment. If that's true, it's yet another "largest metro without (fill in the blank)" distinction for Columbus. Fortunately, there seem to be fewer such "distinctions" now than in past years.
Another measure of the "moo" factor of Cow-lumbus is that it was either the last or next to last Top 50 market to get an independent television station. While Cincinnati and Cleveland both had them (and Cleveland had TWO) in 1968, Cow-lumbus didn't finally get one until 1984 when WTTE signed on. How's that for progress?
It is also worth noting that Cow-lumbus also had the distinction of being one of the last Top 50 markets to have a full power commercial FM station broadcasting in mono. WVKO-FM was still mono in 1982 when it was sold and became WSNY...in stereo for the first time.
It is also worth noting that Cow-lumbus also had the distinction of being one of the last Top 50 markets to have a full power commercial FM station broadcasting in mono. WVKO-FM was still mono in 1982 when it was sold and became WSNY...in stereo for the first time.
BobOnTheJob said:
I've often marveled at how well WTVN's antenna system works. In Central Indiana where WTVN puts a nice daytime signal, when they switch patterns at night, they are GONE. Absolutely no trace of anything. Even if there's no skip right at sundown, the channel is pure noise...a fact that Kansas City on 610 no doubt enjoys.
WTVN once had a CP to build a 50KW night facility. Never was built...anyone know the reasoning behind that...other than money?
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When the trees are leafless during the winter, I can see the WTVN towers from my place off Brice and 70 and not get a 100% clear signal. Same thing when I lived in Pickerington ... I could see the beacons and hear a good deal of crosstalk under WTVN some nights.
I seriously doubt WTVN will ever be able to cover the metro nights with a great signal. Their shot in Circleville several years back was about the best they had.
Actually Nationwide sat on the license for Channel 28 (originally to be called WRFD-TV) for many years. They didn't think an independent was viable in Columbus. I guess they were wrong. They lost the construction permit and it became up for grabs again And if you think Sinclair is bad, I think even Bill Swad applied to get it as a christian station.
I think neither Jacksonville, Miami nor Tampa traditionally had 50kw AM stations. That may not be the case now given all of the pattern changes.
I think neither Jacksonville, Miami nor Tampa traditionally had 50kw AM stations. That may not be the case now given all of the pattern changes.
The original allocation was for Channel 47. Channel 28 was allocated to Newark then and had an educational station (WGSF-TV) operated by the school board. After it closed down, there was a channel allocation swap that resulted in Channel 28 replacing Channel 47 in Columbus. Nationwide did have a CP on Channel 47 with the call sign WNCI-TV, but it was never built. I don't know how long the FCC let them sit on it like that, but probably way too long. Sinclair was also allowed to sit on it for way too long before they finally got around to building WTTE.
I seem to recall that the reason (or at least one of the reasons) Nationwide let their CP lapse is that they thought the FCC was about to forbid new instances of AM-FM cross-ownership with TV...or something like that. There was a lengthy article about it in Columbus Monthly a long time ago. It's amazing how long it took to get a full-power independent on-air here after Nationwide bailed (quite unnecessarily, as it turned out).
Boyphenom, you're right that Sinclair suddenly seems wonderful compared to the Bill Swad prospect. (If Dirty_Harry were still posting here, I'm sure he'd jump on the Bill Swad thing!)
Boyphenom, you're right that Sinclair suddenly seems wonderful compared to the Bill Swad prospect. (If Dirty_Harry were still posting here, I'm sure he'd jump on the Bill Swad thing!)
Well, I believe Nickelodeon grew out of that, so I guess that (and the whole before-its-time idea of interactive feedback) earned Columbus its little footnote in broadcast history.Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't WOKV, the Mighty 690, Jacksonville 50KW at least for the past 40 years?boyphenom said:
The land was southeast of Circleville ... I believe the proposal was eight towers with a pretty directional 5K daytime/50K nighttime pattern shooting north over Columbus and beyond. I think the NIMBY-type folks killed it ... didn't want to have towers in their area. As I said in another post, I think 610 will have to look long and hard to find a site from which they transmit a usable nighttime signal over the entire metro.
Yes, I drove by the site when they were still trying to build it and there was one very short tower that had been put up. For what, I don't know. There was no structure around it when I saw it and it was way too short to be a tower in part of the proposed array.
I can't figure out why they wanted to run their 5 KW day signal from there since it was going to have to be quite directional and their coverage area would have been severely reduced. Why wouldn't they have just kept the day signal ND from Obetz and run the night from the new site? If you had a chance to see the proposed daytime coverage with the DA, it was horrible compared to the ND coverage they have now.
I can't figure out why they wanted to run their 5 KW day signal from there since it was going to have to be quite directional and their coverage area would have been severely reduced. Why wouldn't they have just kept the day signal ND from Obetz and run the night from the new site? If you had a chance to see the proposed daytime coverage with the DA, it was horrible compared to the ND coverage they have now.
I remember seeing that proposed day pattern several years ago and thinking how ridiculous it would be to run it from Circleville ... no real reason to change their excellent coverage over the entire state. I think the proposed night pattern was fairly similar to the current pattern, but with deeper nulls in some directions.
Hindsight speculation...they probably wanted to have a backup daytime site at the night site. It would be a gross display of stupidity to give up the superb multi-state day coverage they now enjoy.
P
phatdaddy
Guest
Wasn't there also some neighborhood attitude back at that time concerning the Obetz site? That may also have had some bearing on the decision to try and build a new site "out of town". I think this may have also been about the time when the yuppie NIMBY developers torpedoed the WRFD site and they ended up sharing the Greenfield site with then WCOL.
Here are three OLD articles on WTVN's 50,000 watt planed upgrade that was never built because
of zoning issues with it neighbors. The two Columbus Dispatch are not complete but can be seen
at the Columbus Public library.
It's my understanding that plans for another move for the upgrade have been dropped by the station.
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WTVN-AM ready to power towers
Station to boost nighttime signal to 50,000 watts
Business First of Columbus - December 19, 1997 by Kathy Showalter
The Giant wants a radio signal to match its nickname.
WTVN-AM (610) plans to spend $3 million to build eight 440-foot broadcast towers in Pickaway County. If approved by federal authorities, the new towers would by next fall boost the station's nighttime broadcast wattage from 5,000 to 50,000 watts. WTVN would continue to broadcast at 5,000 watts during the day.
"This will give us not only all of Central Ohio, but most of the state of Ohio," said John Potter, WTVN general manager.
It would also give the Columbus-dominant AM a chance to boost its number of advertisers and its ad rates.
Specifically, the power boost would improve the quality of WTVN's nighttime signal to areas such as Lancaster and London, where WTVN's northbound signal from six towers in Obetz is now weak. WTVN's nighttime transmitter and six towers have been in Obetz since the early 1950s. WTVN will continue to broadcast from those towers by day and use them as a back-up at night.
CLICK HERE FOR THE REST OF THE STORY:
http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/1997/12/22/story1.html?t=printable
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FOLKS FIGHT RADIO TOWERS
Saturday, August 29, 1998
NEWS 01C
By By Bob Dreitzler
Dispatch Staff Reporter
CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio - A Columbus broadcaster's proposal to build eight 440-foot towers southeast of Circleville is drawing lots of static from the surrounding rural neighborhood.
Residents who live near Earnhart Hill, along Rt. 56 southeast of Circleville, have organized as Citizens Against Towers to oppose plans by WTVN (610) and its parent company, Jacor Communications of Covington, Ky., to erect the AM radio towers at one of the highest points in the Washington Township neighborhood.
''Our belief is that it devalues all the surrounding properties,'' said John E. Bowers, one of the organizers of the citizens group.
''Visually, it would be very offensive, and the lights on the towers would be intrusive.''
Bowers said the land around the proposed site is a rapidly developing area that contains a mixture of family farms, expensive homes and rural subdivisions.
One subdivision of 23 homes is about 800 feet from the site. Within a half-mile radius are an estimated 90 homes, Bowers said. The Circleville city limit is 1 1/2 miles away.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RADIO STATION IS SUBJECT TO LOCAL ZONING REGULATIONS, COURT DECIDES
Thursday, May 16, 2002
NEWS 07B
Dispatch State Service
CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio -- The Ohio Supreme Court yesterday ruled that a radio station is not a public utility, putting the kibosh on plans by one station to erect towers in southeast Pickaway County.
The unanimous decision clarified that radio stations are subject to local zoning laws -- like any other commercial business.
of zoning issues with it neighbors. The two Columbus Dispatch are not complete but can be seen
at the Columbus Public library.
It's my understanding that plans for another move for the upgrade have been dropped by the station.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
WTVN-AM ready to power towers
Station to boost nighttime signal to 50,000 watts
Business First of Columbus - December 19, 1997 by Kathy Showalter
The Giant wants a radio signal to match its nickname.
WTVN-AM (610) plans to spend $3 million to build eight 440-foot broadcast towers in Pickaway County. If approved by federal authorities, the new towers would by next fall boost the station's nighttime broadcast wattage from 5,000 to 50,000 watts. WTVN would continue to broadcast at 5,000 watts during the day.
"This will give us not only all of Central Ohio, but most of the state of Ohio," said John Potter, WTVN general manager.
It would also give the Columbus-dominant AM a chance to boost its number of advertisers and its ad rates.
Specifically, the power boost would improve the quality of WTVN's nighttime signal to areas such as Lancaster and London, where WTVN's northbound signal from six towers in Obetz is now weak. WTVN's nighttime transmitter and six towers have been in Obetz since the early 1950s. WTVN will continue to broadcast from those towers by day and use them as a back-up at night.
CLICK HERE FOR THE REST OF THE STORY:
http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/1997/12/22/story1.html?t=printable
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FOLKS FIGHT RADIO TOWERS
Saturday, August 29, 1998
NEWS 01C
By By Bob Dreitzler
Dispatch Staff Reporter
CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio - A Columbus broadcaster's proposal to build eight 440-foot towers southeast of Circleville is drawing lots of static from the surrounding rural neighborhood.
Residents who live near Earnhart Hill, along Rt. 56 southeast of Circleville, have organized as Citizens Against Towers to oppose plans by WTVN (610) and its parent company, Jacor Communications of Covington, Ky., to erect the AM radio towers at one of the highest points in the Washington Township neighborhood.
''Our belief is that it devalues all the surrounding properties,'' said John E. Bowers, one of the organizers of the citizens group.
''Visually, it would be very offensive, and the lights on the towers would be intrusive.''
Bowers said the land around the proposed site is a rapidly developing area that contains a mixture of family farms, expensive homes and rural subdivisions.
One subdivision of 23 homes is about 800 feet from the site. Within a half-mile radius are an estimated 90 homes, Bowers said. The Circleville city limit is 1 1/2 miles away.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RADIO STATION IS SUBJECT TO LOCAL ZONING REGULATIONS, COURT DECIDES
Thursday, May 16, 2002
NEWS 07B
Dispatch State Service
CIRCLEVILLE, Ohio -- The Ohio Supreme Court yesterday ruled that a radio station is not a public utility, putting the kibosh on plans by one station to erect towers in southeast Pickaway County.
The unanimous decision clarified that radio stations are subject to local zoning laws -- like any other commercial business.
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