“Over the years, we’ve had people request that we get a signal in there,” Spry said. “The opportunity opened, and we did it.”
It was a bonus that he acquired a signal he calls “a heritage station.”
WHSS 89.5 FM began broadcasting in May 1975, starting out as a Hamilton High School class with periodic broadcasts. It eventually transitioned into a station with 24-hour programming, and over the decades it was owned by the Hamilton City Schools, the format initially included classical and jazz, public affairs and play-by-play sports broadcasts. In the 1980s and 1990s, it was a pop and rock music format.
Live programming on WHSS ended in May 2010, and the school district sold the station to Sacred Heart Radio later that August so the regional Catholic-centred station could expand its northern Cincinnati reach. Sacred Heart Radio had also acquired WPFB 910 AM in Middletown in April 2016.
Sacred Heart Radio had taken the 89.5 FM signal off the air several months ago. When Spry, owner of Spryex Communications, which presents ClassX Radio, heard the channel wasn’t being used, he approached the Newport, Ky.-based religious radio station and bought it. He was able to simulcast ClassX Radio programming in just about the 11th hour of its license being revoked by the Federal Communications Commission for non-use.
Spry said the FCC has a rule that if a radio channel doesn’t broadcast for 12 consecutive months, then its license is revoked. ClassX Radio began simulcasting its programming on WHSS 89.5 with four weeks to spare.
As he said, Spry acquired the station to expand its coverage. Until the WHSS station acquisition, Spryex Communications had two channels: 88.9 FM, which primarily served western Hamilton County, and 89.1 FM, which serves the Lebanon-Springboro areas in Warren County.
“It was a perfect fill-in for us, to go between Cincinnati and Lebanon, to try to reach some of that northern Cincinnati area,” Spry said.
Affiliates that carry ClassX Radio programming include 92.1 FM, accessible in Covington, Ky., and downtown Cincinnati; 95.5, accessible in the Erlanger and Florence, Ky., area; 105.5 FM, accessible in northern Hamilton County; and 95.9 FM, accessible in Hartsville, S.C.
Spry said ClassX isn’t a commercial radio station and takes pride in being a non-profit, saying, “It’s not all about money.”
“There’s still somebody local that’s doing local things for local communities,” he said. “We’ve put stations in local communities, and we’ve served them.”
When asked if he’s planning to acquire additional radio stations, he said, “If there’s an opportunity to expand, we would.”
About the Author
