BCR gets money… maybe
Don Day | October 5, 2009Boise Community Radio is playing up a big $227,000 grant from the government – earmarked for broadcast equipment.
But the money comes with strings: They have to raise $75,000 from local donors in the next 18 months to get the cash. No local match, no dough from the feds. Jeff Abrams’ plea for donations is after the jump.
Greetings!
We are excited to announce that Radio Boise has been awarded $227,000 to help purchase broadcasting equipment under a federal program administered by the Department of Commerce!!! The grant will form the centerpiece of a campaign designed to raise sufficient funds to allow us to begin a local, noncommercial radio broadcast on 89.9 FM this spring.
This news cannot be understated. For every tax-deductible dollar donated within our community, we will receive three federal dollars! Word of the great news arrived last week from Rep. Walt Minnick’s office.
Thanks to this award, Radio Boise will have a compelling catalyst for our fundraising efforts so we can begin broadcasting at the earliest possible opportunity. As important as this news is, we can’t get this money without YOU! The 18-month grant cycle will require $75,000 in local matching dollars. This is a time when everyone wants their charitable dollars to stretch as far as they can. The grant couldn’t be a better opportunity to leverage your giving and help us get on the air!
Funds will go towards the purchase of all the equipment necessary to begin broadcasting on 89.9 FM – a transmitter, our antenna and studio gear for production and on-air control rooms. Radio Boise will also require donations of up to $150,000 for our first year operating expenses.
We should add that there was an extremely rigorous evaluation of this proposal. It’s very satisfying to have the accomplishments of Radio Boise validated by the appropriation of these funds. This is just the next step in creating an independent, noncommercial, locally-programmed radio station that our community can call its own!
Please use the button below to give what you can and pass this along to your friends, challenging them to do the same. Thanks for your continued support!Jeff Abrams
Executive Director
I'd donate if I felt like I'd ever be able to hear the station from my home in Boise. I'd love it if this blog would take a look at the map of the coverage area the FCC made for the future BCR (if you search their application on the FCC website, you'll see it there). The signal doesn't reach most of Boise. I'd love to hear from a non-BCR expert: should I be taking this map seriously? Or should I believe BCR when they say it will?
Also: I'd be more likely to give with a more experienced leader/fundraiser/radio person at the helm.
Editor's note: We've actually done that – about a year ago. BCR says it will reach Boise. The FCC doesn't. The truth is anyone's guess.
The reality is that radio reception is a complicated thing. Your ability to receive BCR is going to depend on your location in Boise, and the amount of effort you want to put into receiving he signal. Regardless of what you hear from BCR, their 89.9 signal will not be nearly as easy to receive in any part of Boise as local Deer Point signals. However, this signal may offer better coverage in some areas than others. For example: the Broadway-Boise Avenue area for instance, will have worse reception than on the bench in the Overland-Cole area. This means that the tuners in Zunes, cheap boomboxes, or clock radios will likely not tune in BCR's signal. Residents in these tough areas will likely have to improve their antennas, relocate their radios, or purchase better quality FM receivers. Usually, if there is a will, there is a way to receive a weak signal. You may have to put up with the nuisance of a little fuzz and static in spots, but if you enjoy the program material enough, you might find that worthwhile to put up with.
BCR has also talked about adding a translator to improve the signal in these areas.
KQTA 106.3 is at the same proposed site as 89.9. But, they run 100,000 watts horizontal & 100,000 watts vertical whereas 89.9 will be 16 watts horizontal and 7,900 watts vertical.
If the FCC decides it’s OK not to protect a now vacant channel 6 they might be able to bump that 16 watts up to 7,900 watts.
KQTA’s 60 dBu covers Boise OK. In fact Longley Rice calculation (closer to actual) shows they cover nearly all of Boise with a 70 dBu signal.
7,900 watt 89.9 Longley Rice shows most of the downtown Boise and part of the first bench to have less than 50 dBu. That 93.5 translator they plan to use in Boise will need a bit more power than it has now to fill all that.
I would also hope that the 93.5 translator will perform a bit better than what we are hearing now. I was under the assumption that it was running at a lower power for the sake of retaining it's license. It sounds worse than horrible. Obviously, the program material being piped into it now is about as clean and transparent as a mud puddle. That doesn't help. It's signal is also extremely weak in Boise. In most places a car radio will not detect the signal while scanning. Is it currently operating at full power? I hope not. A Mr. Microphone connected to a coat hanger on Table Rock would probably cover Boise better.
LOL…Mr. Microphone. Spoken from the back of a convertible Mustang…Hey good looking…we'll be back to pick ya up later…
Ah, yes. The convertible part was cool, but too bad it was only a four-banger. If it had the 5.0, perhaps I would've scored better with the chicks.