Some 64 air miles north of Duluth, Minn., lies the city of Babbitt. The total population is 1,475, and was recently in the news for a transaction involving Duke Wright’s Midwest Communications and Matthew Butler’s Aurora Broadcasting.
Now, Aurora is spinning two of the three stations it obtained in that deal. The buyer has a “real presence” across the Upper Midwest.
As RBR+TVBR first reported in June 2017, Aurora obtained WXXZ-FM/Grand Marais and KAOD-FM/Babbitt, Minn., along with W288AI at 105.5 MHz in Ely, Minn., for $75,000.
It now appears that the Grand Marais station is what is of most value to Butler.
The Babbitt facility, now sporting the calls KZJZ-FM, and its Ely-based translator are being spun by Aurora to non-profit religious broadcast ministry Real Presence Radio.
The deal is valued at $25,000, and a 10% escrow payment has been made to attorney Dennis J. Kelly, serving as agent.
The remainder is to be paid via cashier’s check at closing.
Representing the seller as the broker in this transaction is Steve Moravec of Phoenix Media Group.
Real Presence Radio is a Grand Forks, N.D., religious broadcaster that owns 10 stations and four FM translators across the Upper Plains, not including the recent purchases of KGLL-FM in Gillette, Wyo., and KQAQ-AM in Austin, Minn.
