- by Kevin Diakiw – Surrey North Delta Leader
- posted Aug 7, 2014
A new radio station is coming to Surrey, afterthe Canadian Radio-television andTelecommunications Commission (CRTC) granted a licence to South Fraser BroadcastingInc.
The English speaking station will operate at 107.7 on the FM dial, and boasts an adult-contemporary format.
A news release sent out Wednesday states it will have a strong emphasis on Surrey news,sports and weather and will include community outreach.
Station president Suki Badh thanked many for their support, including the South Surrey Chamber of Commerce, the Surrey Foundation, and Coun. Tom Gill, who came in support of the proposal.
The new station has promised to provide $100,000 each year for the development of Canadian talent,including journalism scholarships, support to the Envision Jazz Festival, Canada Day festivities andthe Fusion Festival.
Read More HERE
Based on financial backing and community support, this station has all the makings of becoming a future South Asian language station. It’ll be another case of “we can’t make money, so we’ll flip to a format that we wanted to be all along.” It’s too bad because this is one section of the Lower Mainland that should have a local station with Abbotsford/Mission and the Tri-Cities already with their own signals.
Dave makes what sounds like a fair speculation, ’cause it’s a tried and true gambit, after all.
(Decades ago, Selkirk wanted a Rock station but started CJAZ to show jazz wouldn’t work)
The fast growing area that could really use a localized radio staion is the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows- PoCo-Albion and Mission area (with as big or bigger a population base as Abbotsford/Clearbrook).
Surrey will eventually have to have it’s own pukkah station (… maybe (hopefully?) this will become one.
As long as they don’t flip it to another Air India station, this has some great potential, but I suspect they already have this planned. Nothing like weaseling in through the CRTC.