We just received word from recent grantee KSQD in Santa Cruz that thanks to support from Rex and many donors large and small, the station has been able to purchase an additional two radio licenses, which will enable it to triple the reach of its signal in the Santa Cruz area. Thanks to the new frequencies, KSQD programming will soon be reaching the communities of Salinas, Monterey, Carmel, Prunedale, Seaside and Watsonville.

From the press release:

(Santa Cruz, CA) Community radio station KSQD has reached its capital campaign goal of raising $400,000 to purchase two radio licenses to triple its audience reach. Once built, K-Squid’s programming will reach a potential audience of 645,000 listeners, up from 175,000 currently.

In 2022 the broadcaster embarked on a fundraising campaign to buy the licenses and equipment for 89.7 FM, a full-power FM station licensed to Prunedale, and 89.5 FM, a translator licensed to Monterey.

The completion of fundraising means the station will be cleared to purchase the frequencies and begin building the studio/transmitter links that tie the signal from KSQD to be rebroadcast on the other two channels.

The funds were provided by major donors Pat and Rowland Rebele, The Rex Foundation, an anonymous major donor, and countless individuals who gave at every level between $10 and $10,000. In one three-day period during its mini pledge drive in early February, listeners showered the station with over $18,000, closing out the capital campaign.

KSQD (K-Squid), which is run by nonprofit, Natural Bridges Media, was founded in 2019 to serve the local community with news, interviews, and music programming relevant to the region. Since the original signal at 90.7 FM does not reach the entire county, such as parts of Watsonville and Aptos, the board of directors has been in a search for ways to expand its signal since its inception.

Currently, KSQD’s program schedule includes a mix of musical styles, from Jazz to Classical to Rock and Bluegrass/folk sounds. The talk programming is a mix of nationally syndicated shows such as Democracy Now!, Thom Hartmann, Counterspin, and Your Call and locally-hosted shows such as Talk of the Bay, Be Bold America, What a Week, Ask Dr. Dawn and the Dream Journal. The mission of Natural Bridges Media/KSQD is to build community through quality broadcasts, podcasts, training programs and community events. We celebrate the uniqueness of our region through news, arts, and culturally diverse programming.