KXWA

KXWA (101.9 FM) is a radio station licensed to Centennial, Colorado, United States. The station serves the Denver metropolitan area and is currently owned by the WAY-FM Network.[1] Its studios are located in Longmont, and the transmitter is near Castle Rock.

For the airport serving Williston, North Dakota assigned the ICAO code KXWA, see Williston Basin International Airport.
KXWA
Broadcast areaDenver, Colorado
Frequency101.9 MHz
BrandingWAY-FM
Programming
FormatContemporary Christian
Ownership
Owner
KCWA
History
First air date
January 28, 1967 (as KRYT-FM)
Former call signs
KRYT-FM (1967-1976)
KINX (1976-1979)
KKCS-FM (1979-2005)
KGDQ (2005-2008)
KKHI (2008-2011)
Call sign meaning
For "Way FM"
Technical information
Facility ID70822
ClassC3
ERP9,500 watts
HAAT163 meters (535 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
39°23′7″N 105°2′52″W
Links
WebcastListen Live
Websitewayfm.com

History

In Colorado Springs

On January 14, 1965, William S. Cook obtained a construction permit to build a new radio station in Colorado Springs.[2] It went on the air January 28, 1967, as KRYT-FM, a companion to daytime-only KRYT (1530 AM). On December 6, 1976, the KRYT name moved fully to AM, and the station adopted an adult contemporary format as KINX, with KRYT AM going to disco music.[3][4]

In 1979, the two stations (then KXXV and KINX) were acquired by Mountain Center Broadcasting Company, part of Texas-based Center Group Broadcasting, for $765,000.[5] Walton Stations acquired both stations in separate transactions in 1982, with the FM going for $1.02 million.[6] Under Walton, the station broadcast country music and became a major player in the market, being the top-billing station from 1989 to 1997 and the highest-rated local station in much of that time period.[7]

Walton sold KKCS-FM to Superior Broadcasting in 2003 for $18 million.[8]

Denver market move-in

Superior sold KKCS-FM to Bustos Media for $16 million in 2005, retaining the intellectual property and moving it to Cañon City's 104.5 MHz, which it leased.[9] Meanwhile, Bustos moved KKCS-FM north from Colorado Springs to Centennial, with a transmitter on Monument Hill, to target the Denver market. In Denver, it changed its format to Regional Mexican as KGDQ "La Gran D", the third Spanish-language FM station in the region.[10]

Bustos sold KKHI in 2010 to Way-FM Communications for conversion to its Christian radio network. The call sign was changed to KXWA that December.[11]

References
  1. "KXWA Facility Record". United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division. Retrieved 2011-04-04.
  2. FCC History Cards for KXWA
  3. Navarro, Linda (January 29, 1977). "Station Break". Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph. Colorado Springs, Colorado. p. 18-D. Retrieved May 1, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. "KRYT Goes Disco". Colorado Springs Gazette-Telegraph. Colorado Springs, Colorado. February 19, 1977. p. 16-D. Retrieved May 1, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting. February 19, 1979. p. 68.
  6. "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting. August 16, 1982. p. 57.
  7. Duncan, James E. (2004). "Colorado Springs" (PDF). An American Radio Trilogy – via World Radio History.
  8. "Deal of the Week" (PDF). Radio & Records. May 2, 2003. p. 6.
  9. Darrow, Dennis (December 6, 2005). "KKCS moves up radio dial". Pueblo Chieftain.
  10. Kreck, Dick (December 5, 2005). "KKCS-FM newest player in thriving Latino market". The Denver Post. p. F9.
  11. "Letter from Bob Augsburg". WAY-FM.com.
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