From the MCRFB NEWS archive: 1985
Motor City Outcry Changes WJR/WHYT Moving Plans
DETROIT — WJR/WHYT are staying put, to the great delight of the Motor City. Public outcry following the stations’ announcement last spring that they would be moving to nearby Troy after 62 years in Detroit was so great, according to WJR/WHYT president and general manager Ron Pancrantz that “management decided the station won’t relocate.”
The announcement came (recently last) December 5, the same day the Detroit City Council passed a unanimous resolution urging the Detroit radio landmark to stay in the city, says WJR promotion director Diane Taylor.
According to Taylor, the 50,000 watt clear channel station has been broadcasting from the art deco Fisher Building since May 4, 1922. Capitol Cities Broadcasting of New York bought the AM/FM combo in 1964 for $21 million and has remained as owner ever since.
Last spring, WJR management announced that the station would be moving 10 miles north to suburban Troy, sometime in 1985. The strong public reaction against the proposed move, coupled with the FCC’s initial rejection of their application — due to too much distance between headquarters and transmitter — caused the station to reconsider.
According to general manager Pancrantz, the FCC’s preliminary ruling against the move “was not a major factor in the decision. Our attorneys had told us we could convince the FCC to approve our move. But it is the outpouring of the public and Detroit city officials that convinced us we should respond to the city’s invitation to explore other locations.”
The lack of needed space for station headquarters has not changed, says station promotion director Taylor, but a new location is now being sought within Detroit city limits. END
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(Information and news source: Billboard; January 5, 1985)
