WPKN will be moving to a new Bridgeport location
RADIO STATION WPKN’S RELOCATION PLANS INCLUDE INCREASED COMMUNITY SUPPORT
WPKN radio is on the move. The spirited, noncommercial, community radio station run by an all-volunteer staff except for two full-time paid employees — a general manager and an operations manager — broadcasts its 10,000-watt signal 24/7 at 89.5 FM and streams it at wpkn.org.
That won’t change after the station uproots from its current home on the campus of the University of Bridgeport, it’s home since 1965.
In fact, WPKN will remain in Bridgeport when it relocates later this year to 277 Fairfield Ave., occupying second-floor offices adjacent to the Bijou Theatre in Bijou Square. It’s a downtown area recently renovated by developer and WPKN enthusiast Phil Kuchma.
“We always envisioned our neighborhood here at Bijou Square to be a hub of entertainment and creativity,” said Kuchma, president of Kuchma Corp., whose numerous Bridgeport properties include such artsrelated organizations as the Downtown Cabaret Theater, the Playhouse on the Green, and the nonprofit gallery City Lights Gallery that he and his wife cofounded.
“WPKN is so diverse as far as the types of music and the types of people who have programs. Over the years, I’ve gotten to know more and more of those involved with the station, and it’s really refreshing to be dealing with volunteers who do so much because of the impact it can have, and who don’t expect anything in return for it except to have people listening and participating.
“It’s to WPKN’s credit, as a group, that this has continued to be relevant. We feel very fortunate to be part of this, and we really see a tremendous amount of opportunity here,” Kuchma said.
Colette Rossignol, in her second term as chairman of WPKN’s board of directors, feels that the move presents a good opportunity for the radio station.
“We felt it was time for us,” Rossignol said. “We are a community radio station, and for us to be more deeply ingrained in our community and moving to downtown Bridgeport is not only going to help us be more visible but also will offer us the opportunity to be more collaborative with other arts groups and the city. The timing was just right.”
Rossignol, who began volunteering with WPKN as a teenager in the early ’80s, explained the uniqueness of the station:
“We just do something a little bit different. We really run the gamut in terms of age, in terms of gender, in terms of having that diverse group of volunteers that reflects our listenership.
“It’s not just that we have great music programming, but it’s also about our news and our public affairs, and even our community calendar, letting our listeners know about all the services and arts organizations and things that they can use and partake in.”
WPKN is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization reaching over 1.5 million listeners in Connecticut, Long Island, parts of New York and Massachusetts.
It also has dedicated Apple and Android apps. WPKN became independent and a listener-supported entity after acquiring ownership of its broadcast license from UB in 1989.
The search for a new home became urgent last June, when it was announced that buildings and programs at the financially struggling UB would be taken over by Sacred Heart University, Goodwin University in East Hartford, and the Paier College of Art in Hamden. Sacred Heart eventually backed out of the arrangement.
WPKN, which was concerned about losing its space, looked at 26 locations before settling on 277 Fairfield Ave., and the staff voted unanimously to approve the choice.
Last October, the station signed a five-year lease with Kuchma to move into its new home, with two 10-year extension options. More than 150 volunteers make up the on-air staff, and music programs include jazz, blues, reggae, folk, rock, classical and world music.
Two on-air staff members were inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame: Mark Naftalin, original keyboardist for the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, and Chris Franz, drummer for Talking Heads.
Franz, who’s been in plenty of radio stations in his career — about 1,000, by his count — sees something special in WPKN.
“What makes it unique is the people who are on the air doing the shows,” he said. “Almost more than the music that’s played, I like the spirit of the programmers. I have a great deal of admiration for the people that do this really out of the goodness of their soul.”
WPKN General Manager Steve DiCostanzo, who has been instrumental in the move and is overseeing the logistics, said the relocation efforts are well in place, although it’s a huge undertaking.
“It’s like moving out of your family’s house, because we’ve been in that space since the early ’60s. There is a lot of stuff to consider and prioritize on what gets moved and what doesn’t,” DiCostanzo said.
“It’s really remarkable from my vantage point to see how hard our volunteers are working on this, because it is unprecedented. Kudos to Phil Kuchma, also. He is playing the role of construction manager and helping us with his expertise as somebody who not only owns buildings but also has a construction and a management company.”
DiConstanzo said the timetable for the move is late spring, early summer.
“The hope is that we’ll make the actual move sometime in late May into June,” and he likes the synergy WPKN’s presence will bring to the Bijou Square area once the move is complete.
“I’m calling where we are going to be ‘The new cultural corridor’ for downtown Bridgeport,” he said.
“MOVING TO DOWNTOWN BRIDGEPORT IS NOT ONLY GOING TO HELP US BE MORE VISIBLE BUT ALSO WILL OFFER US THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE MORE COLLABORATIVE WITH OTHER ARTS GROUPS AND THE CITY.”