The number of low-power FM stations in the United States rose to 2,007 as of March 31, according to FCC data, but we need to subtract at least one from that count.
An LPFM in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula recently turned in its license after its board of directors voted to end operations.
WNOA(LP) ceased broadcasting on April 6, the day after Easter. The station was licensed to Claves Regni Ministries, which does business as Northern Apostle Radio.
It mostly broadcast a Catholic talk radio format from Eternal Word Television Network mixed with a bit of local programming.
According to board minutes from a special meeting in late February, the LPFM’s board members seemed split on the direction of the station.
But the bishop for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Marquette recommended ending operations so that financial resources could be directed to other needs within the local parish, according to a person familiar with developments.
The religious non-profit received a CP for WNOA in early 2014 and signed on later that year. It operated on 103.9 MHz. On the FCC website, the station is listed as being silent.
The minutes from the board meeting provide unusual insight into a station board’s decision to cease operations. Members discussed the possibility of remaining a low-powered station or “going high-powered,” which would change its “circumstances and needs, but allow it to serve a larger listening audience.”
According to the minutes, the station recently has been “operating in the red in the amount of approximately $1,500 per month.”
A board member also reported the number of donations it received were “three online donations and maybe three checks a month in the mail.” In addition: “The donations all came from people who live in Marquette and not from any outside the area.”
Another member proposed ceasing operations on the Monday after Easter, with the measure being adopted at the February meeting.
Tim Presley, a member of the station board, said the LPFM served the northwest tip of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula operated with a volunteer staff, while Northern Apostle Radio paid for engineering services.
“There was some changeover to the board and then some apathy set in regarding the operation of the station. We were not aggressive enough in seeking underwriting dollars and donations,” Presley said.
“Things changed over the years to the point where some folks on the board lost a bit of interest in the radio station’s mission.”
Presley told Radio World the LPFM was perhaps depleting its operating funds in the months before it ceased operations but that station had been solvent before recent changes to its board of directors.
“We just were not very good about actively soliciting funds because the folks needed to do the legwork were dwindling,” he said. “This shutdown process has played out over the last six months or so.”
Presley believes Northen Apostle Radio, which will be dissolved, will likely donate its LPFM equipment to another non-profit. That includes a Crown FM250 transmitter and Nicom BKG-1P antenna.
WNOA rented a room for its studio from the Diocese of Marquette and operated BSI Simian radio automation software, according to Presley.
You can see a trend line in the number of LPFM stations in the United States here.
