Hawkesbury Gold commences shared air time

Last Wednesday Hawkesbury community station Hawkesbury Gold went to air.

President Rod Rose congratulated his team and said, “In just four weeks we had to locate a site for our transmission tower, obtain custom-made aerials and a transmitter, arrange the hardware and software for broadcasting, and create programs to run 24/7. We only got the electricity turned on at our transmission site 15 minutes before we were due on air.”

radioinfo readers will remember that Hawkesbury Radio lost its full time licence and is now operating on a TCBL. 

The federal broadcast authority (ACMA) has granted both Hawkesbury Gold and Hawkesbury Radio temporary broadcast licences (TCBL) on the condition they share the same broadcast frequency, 89.9FM. Hawkesbury Gold will broadcast half the week from noon Wednesday to midnight Saturday, and Hawkesbury Radio the other half.

As reported by radioinfo, a third association, Windsor-Hawkesbury Community Radio, is seeking community participation to also establish a new radio group in the region. It is hoping to apply for air time on the frequency once it sets up its local association. The aspirant community radio group is being set up by CAMS (Consortium of Australian Media Services).

Rod, assistant district governor for Rotary, is no stranger to community radio. He served for five years as Chairman of the Hawkesbury’s first community radio station when it started in Windsor in 1987.  

Program Manager Allan Quinn is still working to get Hawkesbury Gold’s full range of programs to air, being hampered by a delay in getting an internet link activated.  

“The short time frame meant going to air with limited programming capacity.  However we hope that within the next week we will be able to introduce the normal news, weather and traffic announcements, and then progressively move into a far more varied program schedule. We have lots of innovative stuff in the pipeline.”
 
The new Station is encouraging anyone interested in any aspect of community radio to come forward and get on board.  

Vice President Terry Malecki is keen to build a strong organisation using the wide range of skills hidden away in the local community.  “Already we have had some amazing people contact us; people with extensive international experience at the very top in radio and TV.  But at the other end, we are eager to draw people who may have no experience, but who want to learn and have fun.”
 
Anyone wishing to know more should visit Hawkesbury Gold’s website at www.hawkesburygold.com.au.

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