Durham Radio says a CRTC decision issued Friday will expand revenue opportunities for its Vancouver Smooth Jazz station, WAVE 98.3 (CIWV-FM), after a more than three-year wait.

On Friday, the commission issued its decision on an application to launch a new FM transmitter on 98.7 FM, which will more than double the station’s reach to Metro Vancouver’s Tri-Cities (Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, Port Moody) and communities east of Highway 1.

“For years, we’ve heard from people who loved the music but simply couldn’t receive us once they travelled east,” said Durham Radio President Doug Kirk. “This expansion means more listeners can finally enjoy the station clearly, and it gives even more exposure to the outstanding Canadian artists we proudly feature every day.”

Originally applied for in March 2023, the new transmitter site will be located in the Burquitlam corridor, bordering Burnaby and Coquitlam – 15 kms east of the current transmitter site in Downtown Vancouver on Burrard Street. Kirk told Broadcast Dialogue he expects the $300-400 thousand bet on attracting more Metro Vancouver listeners will pay off in the way of better revenue opportunities.

“The format has got a modest, but sticky following,” said Kirk. “The people who like it, really like it. It’s kind of like country where they get attached to it, but the numbers aren’t big enough yet to our liking. The biggest complaint we had was the reach of the 98.3 signal, which was basically to the North Shore and Downtown Vancouver. This adds in most of rest of Metro Vancouver, starting with Burnaby into the Tri-Cities, and down into New Westminster and Surrey, so it’s a substantial increase in over-the-air coverage. We think that will bring in more of the real fans of the format and also get to the size where it’s also useful for advertisers.”

Kirk wants to get the station – which airs a playlist that spans artists from Gino Vanelli, Roberta Flack, James Taylor and Sade to Toni Braxton, Jack Johnson, Olivia Dean and The Weeknd – on a path to viability in a tough advertising market. Despite those challenges, he thinks the station can increase sales volumes once the new transmitter is on the air.

“It took awhile, but good things come to those who are patient,” Kirk said. “Staff are thrilled with the decision. It’s a growth opportunity. We like the market. The City of Vancouver is Canada’s second-largest English-speaking market and so we’re putting our money where our mouth is and continuing to develop the station.”

Despite the closure of a handful of AM stations in the market over the last five years – including Sportsnet 650 (CISL-AM) and 1130 NewsRadio (CKWX-AM) by Rogers Sports & Media earlier this month – Kirk says the over-the-air signal is still important, especially in a heavily car-dependent commuter area like Metro Vancouver.

While profitability has continued to decline amongst commercial radio broadcasters in Vancouver, every year since 2020, he says there is still an opportunity with FM to rebuild audience and become a part of people’s routines.

“It’s not easy times, but you’ve got to find good programming that people like and a group of advertisers that can benefit from that. We’ve had good success stories with accounts that get traffic from advertising with us, whether they’re restaurants, bars or other businesses,” he added.

Planning is underway for the construction of the new transmitter, with the repeater anticipated to be operable late this year or early next spring.