A subsidiary of Madison-based Civic Media is poised to buy NRG Media’s four radio stations serving Waterloo and Cedar Rapids.
According to a press release issued Sept. 18, Cedar Basin Media will buy Classic Hits station KOKZ/105.7 (Waterloo), “Rock 108” (KFMW/107.9 Waterloo), Classic Country outlet KPTY/1330 (Waterloo) and its translator K297BS/107.3 (Waterloo), and Conservative Talker KXEL/1540 (Waterloo) and its translator K263BZ/100.5 (Waterloo).
KOKZ, KFMW, and KXEL also provide strong signals to Cedar Rapids, and the company has a studio in Hiawatha. KXEL’s 50kW signal can be heard across the Upper Midwest at night.
The purchase price is $1.1 million, according to an asset purchase agreement filed with the FCC on Sept. 25. Kalil & Co. served as the broker for the transaction.
Cedar Basin Media took over operation of the stations on Sept. 20 through a time brokerage agreement.
The FCC application to transfer the license states that Civic Media holds 100% of the votes and 96% of the assets of Cedar Basin Media. The ownership of the other 4% of the assets was not listed.
The group had been the de facto flagship stations for Cedar Rapids-based NRG Media, which is also in the process of selling stations in Wisconsin and Nebraska to other companies. NRG also owns stations in Illinois.
The expansion marks Civic Media’s entry into Iowa after previously buying stations in Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota.
In Cedar Rapids, the stations compete with groups owned by iHeartMedia, Townsquare Media, and KZIA Inc., among others. Its main competitor in Waterloo is Coloff Media.