In the eastern San Gabriel valley, I have always noted what appeared to be a broadcast tower atop the Covina hills. Couple hundred feet high, traditional red and white paint job, customary red beacon visible at its top by night. It can be seen easily from the 10 freeway while passing through West Covina, and is visible dead ahead of you when driving south on Citrus Avenue. In Google Earth, it shows up at 34.038175 -117.890000 / 34° 2'17.28"N 117°53'24.38"W (screen capture). (Those coordinates also work in Google Maps, but you need to pan south a little to find it.)
Anyway, my curiosity recently/finally reached a point where I felt inclined to identify the station using it. Problem was, the FCC's database didn't show any station using that tower. According to these search results, there are a few stations nearby, but only one has a tower in the Covina hills (KRCV 98.3 FM). And as this screen capture demonstrates, KRCV (right placemark) is nowhere near the "mystery" tower (left placemark).
Hitting that dead end, I tried a general FCC ULS geosearch, and that lead me to its current user. But the match I got was the last thing I would have anticipated: the City of West Covina. Specifically, its police and fire departments. See for yourselves. I don't know about anyone else, but a hilltop FM-style stick large enough to mandate an FAA coat of paint and lighting seems pretty "luxurious" for a small municipality's police and fire trucks.
At this point, I'm wondering whether the tower may have in deed been built for a broadcaster that's now long gone -- with the city simply taking it over. Are there any local tower historians in attendance?
Anyway, my curiosity recently/finally reached a point where I felt inclined to identify the station using it. Problem was, the FCC's database didn't show any station using that tower. According to these search results, there are a few stations nearby, but only one has a tower in the Covina hills (KRCV 98.3 FM). And as this screen capture demonstrates, KRCV (right placemark) is nowhere near the "mystery" tower (left placemark).
Hitting that dead end, I tried a general FCC ULS geosearch, and that lead me to its current user. But the match I got was the last thing I would have anticipated: the City of West Covina. Specifically, its police and fire departments. See for yourselves. I don't know about anyone else, but a hilltop FM-style stick large enough to mandate an FAA coat of paint and lighting seems pretty "luxurious" for a small municipality's police and fire trucks.
At this point, I'm wondering whether the tower may have in deed been built for a broadcaster that's now long gone -- with the city simply taking it over. Are there any local tower historians in attendance?
Thanks.