 | |
| Broadcast area | Grand Rapids-Muskegon |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 105.3MHz |
| Branding | 105.3 Hot FM |
| Programming | |
| Format | Top 40 (CHR) |
| Affiliations | Westwood One |
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| WTNR,WJRW,WKLQ,WLAV-FM,WWSN | |
| History | |
First air date | 1984 (as WCXT) |
Former call signs | WCXT (1984-5/4/06) |
Call sign meaning | Hot or Hits |
| Technical information | |
| Facility ID | 71090 |
| Class | B |
| ERP | 20,000watts |
| HAAT | 242 meters (794 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 43°18′35.1″N85°54′45.2″W / 43.309750°N 85.912556°W /43.309750; -85.912556 |
| Links | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | 1053hotfm.com |
WHTS (105.3FM) is acommercialradio stationlicensed toCoopersville, Michigan, and serving theGrand Rapids metropolitan area. It airs atop 40 (CHR)radio format and is owned byCumulus Media. The studios are on Monroe Center Street NW in Grand Rapids.
WHTS is aClass B FM station with aneffective radiated power (ERP) of 20,000watts. It is heard as far north asBaldwin, as far south asHolland, and as far east asEdmore. Thetransmittertower is on Alger Road at West 136th Street inAshland Township, Michigan.[1]
The stationsigned on the air in 1984; 41 years ago (1984). Its originalcity of license wasHart, Michigan, and its firstcall sign was WCXT. It had an effective radiated power of 100,000 watts, the maximum permitted for most FM stations. The signal covered a large amount of West Michigan. Although the station mentioned Hart,Muskegon,Ludington andGrand Haven in its top-of-the-hourstation identification, it could be heard clearly out toManistee,Big Rapids, andHolland, and acrossLake Michigan inWisconsin. The original owner was Waters Broadcasting.
WCXT had variousrock formats, includingABC'sheavy metalZ-Rock music service. In 1988, it shifted toSoft Adult Contemporary as "Light Mix 105.3." As an AC station, WCXT was mostlyautomated andvoice-tracked except for morningdrive time, which was hosted by Mark Waters (son of the station's owner Nancy Waters).
On July 2, 1999, control of the station was transferred under aLocal Marketing Agreement (LMA) to Harbor Pointe Entertainment, which then switched the format torhythmic contemporary anddance music as "105.3 The Whip," targeting the Grand Rapids market. 105.3 The Whip played dance mixes of CHR and Rhythmic CHR hits with a scattering of hits from Billboard's dance music charts. A call letter change to WWIP was planned, but never happened.
In the fall of 1999, the LMA was canceled due to legal problems with Harbor Pointe Entertainment. WCXT returned to its AC format under a slightly different slogan/positioner, "105-3, Your More Music Station." Other than the new slogan, the format was much the same as before "The Whip" experiment, largely voicetracked and automated, with few commercials.
In 2001, aconstruction permit for a new station on 105.3 was granted inWisconsin. It would be licensed toMukwonago, Wisconsin, and serve theMilwaukee metropolitan area. Because WCXT could regularly beheard acrossLake Michigan in the Milwaukee andSheboygan areas,Salem Communications (which owned the Wisconsin station at 105.3) paid the owners of WCXT to downgrade its signal from 100 kW to 28,000 watts, so its signal would not interfere with the Milwaukee-area station.
In late 2004, WCXT was granted a construction permit to move into theGrand Rapids-Muskegon area. The new city of license became Coopersville and the station's class changed from C to B.
In early 2005, it was announced that WCXT would be sold toCitadel Broadcasting, a forerunner of today'sCumulus Media. With the sale came speculation about what would air once the station was newly built near Grand Rapids. In winter 2005, the format flipped to an automated and commercial-freeclassic country sound. The new owners called the station "Classic Country 105.3" with Citadel's takeover. This would turn out to be a filler format until the transmitter move would be completed.
In late April 2006, the new transmitter hit the airwaves. The station beganstunting with various sound effects such as drills and hammers. Announcements were made that a new station is being built and that classic country had been moved to 92.5 FM (WKOQ, later changing to WLAW). A few days later, the station began calling itself "Reality Radio," featuring various Citadel hosts talking about the upcoming format.
On May 2, 2006 at 7:40 pm, 105.3 relaunched as Top 40 (CHR) "Hot FM." The first song played was "Bad Day" byDaniel Powter. Until the midday hours of May 3, the station ran a 20–30 song loop with an extended period of dead air between the songs. This was likely due to automation problem. The station picked up the WHTS call letters after98.9 inRock Island, Illinois, dropped it earlier that same year. The old WHTS also was a top 40 station.
Citadel merged withCumulus Media on September 16, 2011.[2]