Xavier U. Sells FM's to Non-Commercial Group

March 14, 2005 By Tony Sanders
Copyright 2005 Billboard Radio Monitor

Xavier University is selling its seven FM stations and one FM translator to Cincinnati Classical Public Radio, which owns classical WGUC in the market. WGUC will become a fulltime classical station, with WVXU primarily focused on news and information, according to a notice on the University’s X-Star Radio Network Website.The sale price is $15 million, cash, with $250,000 due immediately as part of an escrow deposit and the remaining $14.75 million due at closing. FCC approval should be fairly routine, since there are no signal-contour overlaps between either WVXU, WGUC, or any of the other FM's being acquired.The notice on the University’s Website also said: “The sale of WVXU was a tough, but very necessary decision by the Xavier University Board of Trustees. The decision was made a bit easier by the possibility of ‘keeping it in the family’ so to speak with WGUC,” said Michael Graham, S.J., president of Xavier University. Richard N. Eiswerth is the president of Cincinnati Classical Public Radio.The sale contract includes a special provision if Cincinnati Classical flips WVXU to another buyer within 10 days of closing on the purchase from Xavier. In that case, Xavier and Cincinnati Classical would split 50-50 any additional money garnered by such a station flip. That split only applies to WVXU and not to the other stations Cincinnati Classical is buying. The other stations in the sale are: WVXA Rogers City, Mich., WVXC Chillicothe, Ohio, WVXH Harrison, Mich., WVXM Manistee, Mich., WVXR Richmond, Ind., WVXW West Union, Ohio, and W237CF Mackinaw City, Mich.Brokers on the deal were Public Radio Capital for the buyer and Patrick Communications for the seller.