It was once home to the 710 AM signal that sent “The Station of the Stars” to Southern California and beyond. Now, property owner ABC Radio is cashing in on a rare piece of valuable SoCal real estate.
Regent Properties has filed plans to build 300 for-sale homes at 12755 Burbank Boulevard in Los Angeles, according to Jake Rodriguez of Hoodline.
But radio aficionados will know the property as the former three-tower site of 710 KSPN(AM), with origins dating back to the 1940s as KMPC.
The three towers still stand, and as a result the 836,000-square-foot property remains one of the largest contiguous undeveloped parcels in the East San Fernando Valley.
As Doc Searls noted in a 2025 blog entry, Disney, parent of ABC, sold KSPN to Good Karma Brands while retaining ownership of the transmitter real estate. In 2022, KSPN relocated its signal to a five-tower site in Irwindale. It diplexes there with 1110 KWVE(AM).
ABC Radio earned praise for selling the land to Regent Properties for approximately $73 million. And Good Karma told us last year that despite limitations, KSPN’s Irwindale site is providing improved coverage into Orange County.
Golden West
KSPN built a new transmitter building at the site in 2009, as detailed in a Scott Fybush site profile, and the three-tower array goes way back. But the KMPC original Art Deco-style transmitter building doesn’t stand on Burbank Blvd. anymore.
On Sept. 19, 1942, with guidance from director of engineering Lloyd Sigmon, KMPC increased its power to 10,000 watts and moved its transmitter location to Burbank Boulevard.
“The Station of the Stars” expanded the facility in 1946 to accommodate a power increase to 50 kW and house a then-new RCA 50F transmitter, according to historical accounts from Los Angeles Radio People.
While the location sits in a dense neighborhood today, the surrounding area was completely agricultural at the time of construction. Design and construction were supervised by KMPC’s longtime transmitter supervisor and engineering pioneer Mal Mobley, who spent the majority of his career with the station, according to historical accounts.
In 1947, KMPC received FCC approval to operate with 50,000 watts during daylight hours and 10,000 watts directional at night from its three-tower array.
Gene Autry became its principal owner in 1952 after his Golden West Broadcasting purchased the station for an estimated $800,000.
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