Travel south of Las Vegas and you’ll find the Tri-State Area comprised of three Colorado River cities: Needles, Calif.; Laughlin, Nev.; and Bullhead City, Ariz.
It’s home to a Class A FM at 103.9 MHz, and if the FCC says yes, it’s poised for an upgrade. But, to accommodate this change, another radio station will need to change to a new frequency — something not exactly easy in the Grand Canyon State, as Entravision Communications knows all too well.
The proposal involves a bigger coverage area desire for KIDD-FM 103.9 in Fort Mohave, Ariz., using the call letters once found on an AM radio station in Monterey, Calif.
A Class C2 signal is what owner ITM, LLC wishes to gain, but for this to happen, it must see a Table of Allotments change that would move a future Class A FM at 103.9 MHz licensed to Peach Springs, Ariz.. It would relocate to 105.3 MHz.
Such a change is one that warrants consideration, Audio Division Assistant Chief Nazifa Sawez believes. As such, a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking input on the ITM proposal has been adopted.
A May 1 comment date and May 16 reply comment date are in place, and a change from 103.9 MHz to 105.3 MHz for a vacant allotment should be one with little if any opposition.
At present, KIDD is airing “JACK FM” as part of a trimulcast, delivering programming to Lake Havasu City, too.
The absence of the Peach Springs station, serving an area along Historic Route 66 to the northeast of Laughlin, is the result of a January 2018 cancellation of the license for the former KEKI-FM.
Thus, any battle over a facility move and reimbursements isn’t in the mix. The opposite can be said of a long-standing feud between Entravision and Prescott Valley Broadcasting Co., which like ITM, LLC, sees Mark Denbo of Smithwick & Belendiuk as its legal counsel.
On July 23, 2019, Entravision filed an application proposing to upgrade one of its stations serving the Phoenix market. However, this required the involuntary move of KPPV-FM 106.7, serving Prescott Valley, Ariz., to 106.9 MHz. A squabble over reimbursement by Entravision for the change commenced, leading to a January 2022 FCC Order and subsequent September 2022 ruling finalizing just how much Prescott Valley was owed by Entravision.
