Huntley radio applying for FCC license

Huntley Community Radio organizers are in the midst of applying for a license with the Federal Communications Commission, a process that if successful, would let HCR operate a low-powered station on FM radio.

The application is due Oct. 15, and Dorothy Litwin, HCR's director of programming and development, wants to spend the weekend working on the form with her administrative team and hopefully turn it in earlier.

She's eager to get started because the last time the FCC opened a low-power radio service window was from 2000 to 2001.

“We had to wait until the application became available and that just happened a couple of weeks ago,” Litwin said.

Right now, HCR streams live on the Internet 24 hours a day and seven days a week.

The station, staffed by more than 50 volunteers, is based in a building inside Deicke Park that belongs to the park district.

The station has been broadcasting across the Internet since September, and its offerings include talk, music, nostalgia and children's shows.

The concept has been six years in the making and started after Allan Pollack, HCR's executive director, discovered a senior community in Florida ran a similar station.

“I thought it was a great concept for our community,” Pollack said.

Litwin is working on new shows for the fall, and looks forward to offering a travel show and another program that would highlight interesting people and places.

“Every show that I have developed pretty much is from our community,” Litwin said.

If HCR gets a license, HCR would simultaneously broadcast across the Internet and FM radio. The low-powered radio station would likely reach listeners within 10 miles of Huntley.

It's not known when the FCC will make a ruling on the application and HCR leaders won't start raising money for required radio equipment until after the FCC approves its license.

Litwin estimates HCR would need to raise between $50,000 and $100,000 for the equipment, which incudes a tower with a satellite dish and a radio transmitter.

“Once we get the OK from the FCC, we'll probably have a good year, to a year-and-a-half after that before we're on the air,” Litwin said.

In the meantime, HCR will continue to hold fundraisers to pay its expenses, which amount to between $1,500 to $2,000 a month, Litwin said. Those bills include rent to the park district for the building in Deicke Park, insurance and a security system.

In addition to partnering with Sun City's Sun Day newspaper to raise money, HCR also accepts tax-deductible donations on its website.