ASRadio LLC is selling its FM station in the Johnson City-Kingsport-Bristol market to the Baker family’s Positive Alternative Radio, which will take it noncommercial. And beyond that, there are all kinds of interesting aspects to this deal.
The station, WEYE-FM Surgoinsville TN, is not one of the market’s blowtorches – it puts a primary signal over only one of the three communities listed in the market’s moniker, that being Kingsport. It’s a Class A on 104.3 MHz with 4.1 kW @ 397’.
The buyer is headed by Edward A. Baker, and is one of those radio groups that favors religious programming and operates on both sides of the commercial/noncommercial divide. It stated on the application that this station will be going noncommercial.
The price will be $275K, with $75K paid in cast at closing and the rest being paid pursuant to a promissory note.
The seller is headed by Alan Sneed. His company bought the station from Tri-Cty Radio LLC, pursuant to a 3/11/05 contract, for $1.2M. So like in many other cases, the price of the station has come down.
Tri-City Radio is related to American Media Services, the multi-tasking broadcast company headed by Edward F. Seeger.
Also of interest is the promissory note – it calls for 60 payments of $3,866.56 to be paid to a well-known name in radio circles: one Mary Catherine Sneed.
An LMA is slated to begin 7/1/12, and the FCC filing provided some color. The rent will be $2K per month plus expenses, with the latter not to exceed $5.5K per month. Estimated third quarter monthly expenses for the station are expected add up to $5,908. Line items of interest include $840/month for performance rights licenses. There is also not a lot of payroll going into this station – the estimated budget calls for only $1,288.
