Mercatanti Calls It Bittersweet

Nassau Chairman/President Lou Mercatanti said the deal (above) keeps classical music alive in the market. “We welcome WCRB as the new flagship of our classical network of stations throughout New England.”
In the announcement, though, Mercatanti also was quoted as saying: “This transaction is also bittersweet for us as the 97.5 FM frequency was the first radio station that Nassau acquired in 1986 from local radio pioneer Herb Hobler. 97.5 FM was originally our station WPST and in anticipation of the potential to move the 97.5 frequency into Philadelphia, we migrated our heritage format of WPST to 94.5 FM in early 2005.
“Having the ability to create a full-market Philadelphia radio station while preserving WPST in New Jersey represented a truly unique opportunity for the company. WPST on 94.5 FM, which now has a superior New Jersey-based signal, continues to lead the market both locally and regionally.”