FM Auction possible for 2011.

News from Fybush.com reports that the FCC could be opening bids for a new Class A FM station in the Erie market next year. Auction 91 is scheduled to take place on March 29th, 2011 with a few Construction Permits up for bids. The one of interest near Erie is in Lawrence Park at 92.7 FM. The opening bid for the channel will start at $100,000 which should have some interest & will probably go much higher. As most of you may know, 92.7 is the home of London, Ontario country powerhouse CJBX or “BX-93.” They operate at 50,000 watts and could present a challenge signal wise to the Class A station which cannot be more than 6,000 watts with a maximum of 225 watts going towards Lake Erie. The antenna would have to be aimed away from the lake and towards Erie but can such a setup work with a very powerful FM already at that dial position. This could also present interference issues with Low Powered FM station WXCS 92.9 in Cambridge Springs. This would not the first time an Erie station could possibly be put on the same frequency as a much more powerful Canadian station. Religious outlet WXNM LPFM 95.9 was approved a few years back and often clashes with CFPL 95.9 “FM 96” who runs about 300,000 watts while WXNM is at 100 watts. Other CPs’ up for bids that day include 96.1 in Ashtabula and 95.3 in Celoron near Jamestown, New York. Both are also Class A frequencies in those areas.