Longest commercial VHF vacancy in a major market

[W2JUV_AL]

One that's always intrigued me is channel 4 at Utica NY. I believe it was dropped in in the 1980s as well, and was never used - or, as best I can tell, even applied for.

I have a slight amount of inside knowledge on this. In the mid 90's (?) I saw copies of what I assume was an application for a Channel 4 xmtr to be located in the vicinity of Forestport NY in northern Oneida County, probably 25mi from downtown Utica. The proposed location was not far from the former Air Force test site on N. Lake Rd and I was employed at Griffiss AFB at the time.

 

[KML0224]

I'm trying to think who was analog channel 4 for all those years around them: New York City (WNBC), Buffalo (WIVB), Pittsburgh (WTAE) and maybe Ottawa, Ontario?

 

[fybush]

Correct. Buffalo was the really serious short-spacing, and I think Ottawa may have been a factor as well. NYC was fully spaced. Pittsburgh was quite distant.

 

[TexasTom]

The Indianapolis market had 4 VHF allocations, down from 5 in the 1947 table. Bloomington is part of the Indy market. Tucson also had 4 since Nogales is considered part of that market.

Phoenix was considered a medium-small market when channels were allocated in 1952 (about 350,000 population at that time).

Boston was originally a 4 commercial-channel market. If Raytheon's WRTB-TV/2 had gone on the air, WGBH would have had to settle for UHF.

Yup, you're right that I missed a couple.

 

[cd637299]

Wait a minute....how about KBEJ/KCWX analog 2 Fredericksburg TX, serving San Antonio/Austin, albeit a rimshot? Shouldn't this one count? It began in 1988.

cd

 

[w9wi]

Wait a minute....how about KBEJ/KCWX analog 2 Fredericksburg TX, serving San Antonio/Austin, albeit a rimshot? Shouldn't this one count? It began in 1988.

True, but the channel wasn't in the initial 1952 table. I don't know when it was added -- if it happened early enough KCWX might be a contender.

I'm finding there were quite a few channels added to the table in the first year or so. There are 28 VHF channels in the 1954-1955 Yearbook that weren't in the 1952 table.

 

[cd637299]

^ Well yes, but I am not sure if we are talking about the '52 table or not; after all SLC's 13 was allocated in 1980 and lay dormant 7 years. When the 2 in Fred'burg was officially allocated, I have no idea; but one site I was reading makes it sound like only about 4 years before the official sign-on.

It's a funny thing....there were two other 2's that signed on in Texas around the same time (Denton & Amarillo), but we are talking *commercial* ones.

I dunno if we have brought this up....but does anyone know what was the very last full-power VHF to sign on in analog in the U.S. of A., commercial or non? And, what was the longest-dormant CP before either a sign-on or a total abandonment, a la Utica 4?

cd

 

[w9wi]

^ Well yes, but I am not sure if we are talking about the '52 table or not; after all SLC's 13 was allocated in 1980 and lay dormant 7 years. When the 2 in Fred'burg was officially allocated, I have no idea; but one site I was reading makes it sound like only about 4 years before the official sign-on.

Stanislav asked what was the longest a commercial VHF allocation remained vacant -- I would read that as asking what's the longest time that passed between the time the FCC began accepting applications for use of an allocation, and when some station began broadcasting on that allocation. So a channel allocated in 1960 and not used until 2005 might qualify, if all the channels allocated in 1952 were in use by 1997. Fuzzy enough?

I dunno if we have brought this up....but does anyone know what was the very last full-power VHF to sign on in analog in the U.S. of A., commercial or non?

I believe the answer is WSKY-4 (now RF-9) in Manteo, North Carolina, launched in 2001.

And, what was the longest-dormant CP before either a sign-on or a total abandonment, a la Utica 4?

WTVU-59 (now WCTX RF-39) New Haven, Connecticut held an inactive construction permit for **41 years**, finally signing on in 1994.

Although that's UHF. I have no idea which VHF would qualify. People weren't as likely to "sit on" VHF permits, as they were far more likely to be financially successful.

 

[KML0224]

Before channel 59 of New Haven signed on, it was used as a translator for WVIT-TV (NBC) channel 30 of New Britain. It was licensed to West Haven, CT as W59AA. WVIT-TV had big time signal problems until they had a major power increase in 1978.

It's also why this market once had two NBC affiliates. Channel 20 of Waterbury was WATR-TV (NBC) until the spring of 1982. They then became WTXX-TV (IND). Today, it's WCCT-TV (CW), the "sister" of our FOX affiliate.

 

[onairb]

KTVU in Oakland was the last of the Bay Area VHFs to sign on, in 1958. Since channel 2 was considered to be the strongest signal on the band, I was wondering if there were other major markets whose channel 2 was the last vacancy to be filled?

 

[Markxxx]

KRII in Chisholm, Minnesota, Channel 11 signed on December 18, 2002. It is a full power semi-satellite of KBJR, NBC for Duluth

 

[w9wi]

Before channel 59 of New Haven signed on, it was used as a translator for WVIT-TV (NBC) channel 30 of New Britain. It was licensed to West Haven, CT as W59AA. WVIT-TV had big time signal problems until they had a major power increase in 1978.

True enough. That's kind of a gray area. In general, translators (and later, LPTVs) don't require allotted channels, so arguably the presence of a translator on an allotted channel could be said to *not* constitute the end of the vacancy of the channel.

On the other hand, years ago a translator could run higher power if it used an allotted channel. So I would imagine W59AA didn't choose channel 59 entirely at random.