The dream of a full-fledged community radio station is rapidly becoming a reality.
The Peach City Community Radio Society has been conducting an extensive search for the right studio location, and have settled on a unit at the Cannery Trade Centre.
“The Cannery already holds an eclectic community vibe and provides an excellent location for so many truly local offerings, so it was a great fit for our community radio studio,” said PCCRS president Dave Del Rizzo. “Not to mention the great feeling we got from Factory 78 Holdings who worked hard to carve out the right kind of space for us. We feel truly welcome and can’t wait to get set up and on the air.”
The society obtained its broadcast licence and call letters (CFUZ at 92.9 MHz on the FM dial) earlier this year, and now that they have a studio location, they can begin the final run to achieving a dream that started nearly six years ago when 70 people gathered to show their support of developing a community radio station.
But before the station can start broadcasting, some redecorating is required and studio equipment needs to be purchased. PCCRS has been working towards a $30,000 goal through its Raise the Radio campaign. The group has raised nearly $21,000 so far and hopes to hit their mark by the time the studio is ready.
Asking for donations during the holidays and at a time where so many other local organizations also need support is tough but the Peach City Radio programmers are asking you to listen to their current online stream, which runs 24 hours per day at www.peachcityradio.org, and to donate if you enjoy what you hear and if you feel that community radio is worth your support.
“In the months ahead, we’ll be painting and equipping the radio studio in the Cannery Trade Centre and we look forward to training dozens of volunteers to broadcast to the community,” said Craig Henderson, the society’s membership director and a longtime radio personality. “We still need to gather more in the weeks ahead to finish the project. This is a very exciting initiative — the Okanagan’s first community radio station — and we welcome individuals, non-profit groups and businesses to be among our founders by donating to the campaign.”