 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
GIVING TEENS A NEW VOICE: PHOENIX, PCA IN TALKS ABOUT PARTNERSHIP IN RADIO STATIONPublished on February 17, 2006 When the Phoenix answered PCA's call for community involvement, it seemed like a perfect fit, officials said. The two nonprofit organizations started preliminary talks three weeks ago. At the Phoenix, the kids are ``very excited'' about the possibility of building a broadcast booth and creating live programming for Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights, said Jane Hamilton, executive director of the Petaluma Phoenix Center. ` `The big buzz at the Phoenix is about the possible radio station,'' Hamilton said. The rest of the station time would be shared by PCA, the university (which plans to run its existing Internet station over the airwaves) and One Ministries Church for morning religious programming. The Phoenix was preserved in 2000 by four telecom engineers with a love of music after the Petaluma company they worked for, Cerent, was bought by Cisco Systems, creating a windfall for some Cerent workers. In a generous gesture, the owners donated the building to a nonprofit group called the Petaluma Phoenix Center so it could continue to fill kids' needs. ` `It was a gift,'' Hamilton said. ``They're really community heroes. And they're all musicians and have a love of music and understand what the Phoenix nurtures.'' The Phoenix currently has a tutoring program, a writer's workshop, an open mike night and a music school. It also has a free dental clinic and a free medical clinic sponsored by Women's Health Specialists. ` `The main thing the Phoenix does is have an open-door afternoon program for teens to come and play music and do homework and skate and socialize, a place to be off the streets,'' Hamilton said. Adding a radio station -- broadcast directly from the Phoenix -- would be a big attraction. It's something the kids at the Phoenix have talked about for years. But the opportunity may slip by unless PCA and the Phoenix can hammer out a contract and raise money for their shared costs, said those involved. The combined startup costs -- to be shared by the three original entities -- are estimated to be about $18,000. That includes installing an antenna in a eucalyptus tree on a Cotati ranch, said Bert Crews, board president of PCA. The Phoenix would have to find financial and professional support to build a broadcast booth and help pay ongoing operating costs. The Phoenix also is seeking mentors and professionals to help with creating and operating the station. So far two disc jockeys, KRSH's Bill Bowker and KMEL's Bobby Cole, have offered to help. PCA itself has been pursuing the radio station concept for years. It hopes to launch live programming in May. The Petaluma portion of the station would be known as KPCA and broadcast on 105.7 FM. The call letters would vary for Sonoma State and the church, though all three would use the same frequency. ` `It's an incredible opportunity for the community and an incredible opportunity for young people,'' Hamilton said. ``There are a lot of things to learn while implementing a radio station.'' Crews said the radio station would also be a big boost for PCA by making it available to more people. It currently is available only to cable TV subscribers. ` `We would potentially have a much larger audience and much larger membership participation,'' Crews said. PCA would develop new content and be able to broadcast detailed information that isn't available anywhere else, Crews said. During the New Year's floods, for example, residents could have tuned in to know where floodwaters were rising and which roads were closed. ` `It's a project that's been in the works for several years and it's a project that we are determined to see through to fruition,'' Crews said. You can reach Staff Writer Tobias Young at 762-9498 or tyoung@pressdemocrat.com.
|
