Radio station coming soon on Lopez Island

By AMANDA LEIDIG

Staff Reporter

Remember this number: 102.9.

This coming October, tune that station in on your FM radio and you'll hear KLOI — a new radio station broadcasting local Lopez Island programing.

Thanks to a grant application that was submitted almost five years ago, Lopez has been granted an 18-watt, low-powered FM radio station licensed by the Federal Communications Commission.

In short order, a board was formed, the permits process was started, a business plan was created and an equipment list was made. You see, community owned radio stations are a rare commodity - in fact, their existence has become a political debate lately as large corporations have purchased much of the airways. "There's only so many spaces on the dial," said board chair Carol Steckler. "Who has access to the airways is very limited."

So, those involved in the grant process, and interested in keeping airways in the public domain, have been busy getting the radio station off the ground. The group has 18 months, from the time they received the grant, to get the station off the ground and running.

"We have a piece of the radio dial now on Lopez Island," said Carol Steckler.

There will be a mock radio show this Friday, June 30, at 7:30 p.m. in the Lopez Center for Community and the Arts. The evening’s activities will feature five-minute segments by community members who are planning to do programming for 102.9 KLOI.

“Our intent is to entertain people and let the imagination of radio take hold,” Steckler said.

In the coming months KLOI board will be holding fundraisers, as they still need about $25,000 to get the station off the ground. The mock radio show is the kickoff to their fundraising efforts.

Comment on this story.

COMMENTING RULES: We encourage an open exchange of ideas in our online community, but we ask you to follow our guidelines for respecting community standards. In a nutshell, don't say anything you wouldn't want your mother to read.