Bear Radio plans for next big move
By Nathan Straus News Reporter

When Brownsboro Independent School District set up its own internet radio station in 2007, Perry Eaton, parent involvement coordinator for the school, said there were no current plans to upgrade the station to a true AM/FM frequency. This was mainly due to the large waiting period between windows by which an entity could acquire permits to build towers for the stations.

As of January 14, 2008, the school has had a permit allowing BISD to construct a tower for broadcast.

Eaton said he has already decided on both a frequency and a call sign: KLTB 91.1 FM - Love Those Bears.

"They give you a permit," Eaton said, "then you build the station, then they inspect it, then you get the license to broadcast. The permit is the major hurdle, and we've passed it."

Bear Radio now has three years to build a tower and prepare it for broadcast. If the deadline is not met, the permit will be forfeited, Eaton said.

"I'm going to a technology conference in Austin in two weeks to meet with a construction guy," Eaton also said. "This is the next big step for us."

Perry Eaton will meet with John Lackness of SCMS Incorporated; the same company BISD bought its internet station equipment from.

From here Eaton said he will return with the game plan regarding how the school will go about getting its tower.

The good news is as long as the tower is ready for inspection it doesn't matter how long the Federal Communications Commission takes to inspect the tower.

Once the tower is built and the FCC signaled the three-year deadline is considered met.

"We're going to have ads like every other station to fund the station," Eaton said. "We're already filling spots."

The possible tower location chosen by the FCC is not exactly where Eaton would have liked it, he said.

The tower's optimal range doesn't even reach Brownsboro. However, with the aid of a less powerful translator tower, Bear Radio can achieve the desired coverage.

"We have to start with a 2,000 watt tower at Mount Alba, a hill out in the middle of nowhere, " Eaton said. "If we take that then we can put a 200 watt translator between Chandler and Brownsboro, and all I wanted in the first place was a 200 watt tower there anyway."

The school was not allowed to simply put a less powerful tower between Chandler and Brownsboro. It had to buy the big tower first, Eaton commented.

"The FCC laws and regulations are a pain, but that's the way it is," Eaton said. "Jumping through all these hoops is pretty interesting, but at the end we'll have a way that our area will have its own radio station."

Marsha Stephens, BISD business manager, said the school's faculty is excited to have the opportunity to put a tower up for the station.

"I listen to the ball games at home; it's very nice. I'm definitely going to listen to the station in my car," Stephens said.

Bear Radio will remain a student-run operation once the transition to broadcast is complete.