Updated at 9:50am Eastern
In an announcement first shared by local media in Central New York, the radio broadcasting company founded by auto dealer owner Jim Morrell is acquiring the radio stations owned by Galaxy Media.
Albany-based Pamal Broadcasting has agreed to purchase Galaxy’s 10 radio stations in Syracuse and Utica, for an undisclosed amount.
RBR+TVBR independently verified the transaction early Wednesday; Streamline Publishing did not receive a press release from Pamal until mid-morning Wednesday due to technical issues on the company’s end.
Immediate control of the Galaxy stations comes tomorrow (10/1). An LMA ahead of the purchase was agreed upon.
Pamal will therefore immediately take over the following properties:
- Class A WTKW-FM 99.5 in Bridgeport, N.Y. and Class A WTKV-FM in Minetto, N.Y., branded as “TK99.” WTKW serves Oneida and Syracuse, while WTKV covers the college town of Oswego, on Lake Ontario.
- Class A WKRL-FM 100.9 in North Syracuse, branded as “K-Rock”
- Class A WZUN-FM 102.1 in Phoenix, N.Y., branded as “Sunny 102”
- Class B WTLA-AM 1200 in North Syracuse, N.Y., and W249BC at 97.7 MHz in Mattydale, N.Y.
- Class B WKLL-FM 94.9 in Frankfort, N.Y., a “K-Rock” simulcast partner
- Class B WUMX-FM 102.5 in Rome, N.Y.
- W256AJ at 99.1 MHz in Utica, N.Y.
- W243DJ at 96.5 MHz in Rome, N.Y., fed by Class D WRNY-AM 1350 in Rome, N.Y.
Galaxy’s events business assets Taste of Syracuse and the Syracuse Nationals were previously sold to businessman A. Louis Santaro earlier this year, following settlement of a lawsuit over an unpaid $1.1 million loan to Levine, the Post-Standard reports.
Galaxy, founded by CEO Levine, revealed his retirement plans in August. He founded Galaxy Media Partners in 1990 with a single radio station: WKLL, famously operating out of a diner in Utica.
“I have been fortunate to live out a lifelong dream of mine for the past 36 years,” Levine said in a statement. “Time and life march on. While I will miss Galaxy and Syracuse/Utica, I could not be happier to hand things off to Pamal Broadcasting.”
Pamal was founded by Morrell in Albany in 1987. He and his family own 19 radio stations in the Capital District, Poughkeepsie and in Rutland, Vt.
Morrell said, “With this addition, Pamal stations cover an enormous geography ranging from New York City, Long Island and Northern New Jersey, through the entire Hudson Valley to the Capital District, up to Lake George and now out through Utica and Syracuse,” he said. “It truly is a great opportunity for us all.”
Pamal-owned WHUD-FM 100.7 in Peekskill, N.Y., reaches much of the City of New York, while Adult Alternative WXPK-FM 107.1 in Braircliff Manor, N.Y., and Top 40 WSPK-FM 104.7 in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., can be heard in parts of the Five Boroughs.
— With initial reporting by RBR+TVBR in Haiku, Maui, Hawaii
