KHLT-FM
 | |
| City | Belle Plaine, Kansas |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Wichita, Kansas |
| Branding | La Raza 99.7 |
| Frequency | 99.7 MHz |
| First air date | 1994 (as KSNS at 92.7) |
| Format | Regional Mexican |
| ERP | 50,000 watts |
| HAAT | 147 meters |
| Class | C2 |
| Facility ID | 15410 |
| Callsign meaning | K H L T |
| Former callsigns | KUOY (02/10/93-08/12/94) KSNS (08/12/94-10/31/94) KANR (10/31/1994-5/1/2013) |
| Former frequencies | 92.7 MHz (1994-2011) |
| Owner | Alan Hsu and Hong Zhang (La Raza, LLC) |
| Website | laraza997.com |
KHLT-FM (99.7 FM) is an American radio station broadcasting a Regional Mexican format in Wichita, Kansas. The station is licensed to Belle Plaine, Kansas.
History
KANR was first issued a construction permit for 92.7 FM on February 10, 1993, issued as KUOY. The station signed on as an All-News station on March 4, 1996, and has been the only station in Wichita providing that format. In March 2000, it became the new home to Smooth Jazz KWSJ. It was formerly located on 105.3 (now Hot AC KFBZ). In June of that year, KWSJ would relocate yet again, this time to 98.7 (now KNSS-FM). 92.7 would flip to Rhythmic Top 40 as "Fly 92.7" to compete against Rhythmic KDGS "Power 93.9", whose studios are (literally) a few hundred feet from KANR. Former KDGS personality Christopher "Kidd Chris" Foley was also a DJ on KANR and was fired for an infamous run-in with police (he is now at WEBN in Cincinnati). A year later, the station flipped to Alternative. Despite the signal's moderate to poor coverage over Wichita, KANR had a large following of listeners with its Alternative format. The station changed format on September 1, 2006 to Spanish Top 40, branded as "Fiesta 92.7". KANR listeners were upset over the format change. The Wichita market was without an alternative station until August 29, 2014, when KTHR dropped classic rock.
On December 21, 2011, KANR moved from 92.7 to 99.7 FM.
In March 2013, Daniel D. Smith sold the station to Air Capitol Media Group, LLC for $2 million; the transaction was consummated on June 28, 2013. On April 1, Air Capitol registered various domains under the name "Lite", as well as "Wichitas997.com", signaling that the "Fiesta" format will come to an end by May 1, when Air Capitol takes over the station via a Time Brokerage Agreement.[1] It was also hinted by the Wichita Eagle that Brett Harris, formerly of KRBB, would be a part of the new station when his non-compete clause expires that summer.[2]
On May 1, 2013, at Midnight, KANR officially flipped to adult contemporary, branded as "99.7 Lite FM" under the new KHLT-FM call letters.[3] The first song on "Lite" was "It's My Life" by No Doubt.
On July 29, 2015, Air Capitol Media Group announced that the station would be sold back to Daniel D. Smith, per FCC approval.[4][5] The station went jockless following the announcement. On August 17, at Midnight, the station went silent. Three days later, on August 20, the station signed back on and returned to Spanish, this time with a Regional Mexican format, branded as "La Raza 99.7."[6] The sale was consummated on October 26, 2015, at a purchase price of $1,420,717.60; most of the price represented forgiveness of debt still owed from Air Capitol's 2013 purchase of the station.
On March 2, 2016, KHLT-FM was sold to La Raza, LLC for $1.65 million.
References
^ http://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/81521/wichitas-fiesta-to-give-way-to-ac/
^ http://blogs.kansas.com/haveyouheard/2013/03/29/brett-harris-may-have-a-new-radio-home/
^ http://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/81521/wichitas-fiesta-to-give-way-to-ac/
^ https://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/93885/khlt-wichita-to-return-to-previous-owner/
^ http://www.kansas.com/news/business/biz-columns-blogs/carrie-rengers/article29208133.html
^ http://andoverleader.com/2015/08/word-on-the-street-its-lites-out-at-99-7/
External links
Former site for Fly 92.7 (Redirected to its My Space Page)- Query the FCC's FM station database for KHLT
- Radio-Locator information on KHLT
- Query Nielsen Audio's FM station database for KHLT
Coordinates: 37°20′10″N 97°27′54″W / 37.336°N 97.465°W / 37.336; -97.465
