Minneapolis FM Translator Enhancement Boosts WCTS Broadcasting Quality
For over half a century, 1030 WCTS(AM) has served as a steadfast voice of faith within Minnesota's Twin Cities. Since its inception in 1965, the station, run by Central Baptist Theological Seminary, has relied on a powerful 50kW AM signal to connect with the community.
However, as radio-listening habits evolved, the seminary recognized the need for a return to FM to adapt to the changing landscape. In October 2019, after much planning and preparation, an FM translator, K250BY(FM), began service on 97.9 MHz, broadcasting from Fourth Baptist Church's steeple in west Minneapolis. While this modest signal offered coverage to the campus and the northwestern metro area, its reach fell short of reestablishing WCTS in the greater Twin Cities community.
In 2021, long-time WCTS general consultant, Steve Moravec, president of Saint Paul-based Phoenix Media Group, spotted an opportunity. He noticed an LPFM station, KQEP, offering the same frequency in the east metro area—one previously protected by WCTS—seemed to be inactive and unlikely to reapply for its license renewal. Seizing this potential for WCTS to expand, Moravec proposed a strategic relocation of the FM translator station to the top of the IDS Center in downtown Minneapolis, the tallest building in Minnesota.
This proposal aimed to increase K250BY's coverage area and potential audience exponentially. The FCC granted the application in July 2022, but not without challenges. Just one day before WCTS' filing, Park Public Radio submitted an application for an adjacent frequency in the same coverage area, creating potential interference issues.
Following a lengthy regulatory process and numerous delays, WCTS and Park reached a settlement agreement in August 2023, finding a resolution that would allow both stations to serve their communities without interference. By January 2025, construction of the expanded K250BY broadcast facility on the downtown IDS Center was complete, improving the signal's reach across the metropolitan area.
This expansion, timed to coincide with WCTS' 60th anniversary, is a testament to the station's commitment to reaching new generations of listeners with the Gospel message that has defined WCTS since its first broadcast in 1965. On June 25, K250BY will be dedicated to the station's continuing ministry, honoring the vision of its founder, Dr. Richard Vernon Clearwaters, and the lasting legacy of faith-based broadcasting in the Twin Cities.
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- The FM translator station, K250BY, was relocated to the top of the IDS Center in downtown Minneapolis to increase its coverage area.
- Park Public Radio's application for an adjacent frequency in the same coverage area created potential interference issues, leading to a lengthy regulatory process.
- Following the settlement agreement between WCTS and Park in August 2023, both stations could serve their communities without interference.
- By January 2025, construction of the expanded K250BY broadcast facility was complete, improving the signal's reach across the metropolitan area, a crucial step in WCTS's commitment to reaching new generations with the Gospel message, as part of its 60th anniversary celebrations.
