For the week of March 5 - 11, 2003

NPR Affiliate plans expansion in Sun Valley

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By GREGORY FOLEY
Express Staff Writer

The Boise-based affiliate of National Public Radio is planning to expand the broadcast range and programming of its satellite station in Sun Valley.

Jim East, program director for Boise State Radio, said Monday that the radio broadcast group is planning to convert its existing low-wattage radio transmitter on Bald Mountain’s Seattle Ridge into a higher-wattage radio station to be called KBSS.

The project was first announced last week during the annual spring pledge drive for KBSX, Boise State Radio’s flagship station for its NPR News 91 broadcasts. The Boise station’s programming is currently transmitted to the Wood River Valley area on FM channel 91.1 from the Bald Mountain repeater station, called K216CY-Sun Valley.

East said the main element of the expansion project is to install a new 700-watt transmitter on Seattle Ridge in place of the group’s existing 7-watt transmitter. As planned, the new transmitter would utilize Boise State Radio’s standing broadcast tower, he noted.

"It should provide a lot better coverage for the area," East said.

The new station would create "no environmental impact and no (new) visual impact," he added.

The KBSS station is not planned to include on-site staff.

East said the new station will be "predominantly" a repeater station, transmitting KBSX broadcasts and an array of regular NPR programs.

However, the new KBSS station is planned to broadcast additional local and regional news stories that would be generated by a new central Idaho news bureau in Twin Falls, East said.

"Basically, it would be NPR News 91 with some additional news coverage," he said.

Boise State Radio has announced that it is seeking to raise $120,000 to fund the project. Fund raising is "just getting started," East said.

If the fund-raising campaign is successful, Boise State Radio would plan to start building the new Sun Valley station in spring 2004, East noted.

Additional details about the KBSS project will be released in the near future, East said.

In addition to the K216CY-Sun Valley repeater station, Boise State Radio maintains two additional broadcast stations in the Wood River Valley. Programming of KBSW—a Twin Falls-based station that broadcasts a mix of classical music and news—is transmitted locally from Ketchum on FM channel 93.5 and from Bellevue on channel 89.3.

 

The Idaho Mountain Express is distributed free to residents and guests throughout the Sun Valley, Idaho resort area community. Subscribers to the Idaho Mountain Express will read these stories and others in this week's issue.