CFLZ-FM (101.1

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one h ...

) is a

commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...

Fort Erie Fort Erie is a town on the Niagara River in the Niagara Region, Ontario, Canada. It is directly across the river from Buffalo, New York, and is the site of Old Fort Erie which played a prominent role in the War of 1812. Fort Erie is one o ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

, serving the

Niagara Region The Regional Municipality of Niagara, also colloquially known as the Niagara Region or Region of Niagara, is a regional municipality comprising twelve municipalities of Southern Ontario, Canada. The regional seat is in Thorold. It is the southe ...

and the

Buffalo-Niagara Falls metropolitan area Buffalo Niagara may refer to a variety of places and things in the vicinity of Buffalo, New York, and Niagara Falls. Geography * Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area * Buffalo Niagara Region Infrastructure * Buffalo Niagara International Ai ...

. It is owned by Byrnes Communications and it broadcasts an adult hits

format Format may refer to: Printing and visual media * Text formatting, the typesetting of text elements * Paper formats, or paper size standards * Newspaper format, the size of the paper page Computing * File format, particular way that informati ...

, known as ''101.1 More FM''. CFLZ's

studio A studio is an artist or worker's workroom. This can be for the purpose of acting, architecture, painting, pottery (ceramics), sculpture, origami, woodworking, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, industrial design, ...

s and offices are on Ontario Avenue in

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the border between the province of Ontario in Canada and the state of New York in the United States. The largest of the three is Horseshoe Fall ...

. CFLZ-FM has an

effective radiated power Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would ...

(ERP) of 50,000

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wa ...

s. The

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to ...

is on Kraft Road in Fort Erie, near

Ontario Highway 3 King's Highway 3, commonly referred to as Highway 3, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario which travels parallel to the northern shoreline of Lake Erie. It has three segments, the first of which travels from t ...

History

CJFT and CKEY-FM

The station was launched on July 1 ( Canada Day), 1986, at 5:30 p.m. as AM 530 CJFT, playing a

Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "conte ...

format. Afternoon drive personality Alan Chonka signed CJFT on the air. It moved to FM in 1991, adopted the CKEY-FM call letters, and flipped to adult standards. (from 1945 to 1991, CKEY was the callsign of an AM radio station in Toronto, which now airs Chinese programming as Fairchild Radio affiliate

CHKT CHKT (1430 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The station, owned by the Fairchild Group service, airs mainly Cantonese and Mandarin Chinese programs as well as weekend shows in the following languages: Cambodian ...

.) On August 26, 1994, at noon, the station switched to

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

as ''FM 101 The Planet''. By 1996, the station shifted to

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded danc ...

(similar to CING-FM in nearby Hamilton) while retaining the "Planet" moniker. It was an affiliate of "Pirate Radio" with Chris Sheppard. On August 21, 1996, the

Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; french: Conseil de la radiodiffusion et des télécommunications canadiennes, links=) is a public organization in Canada with mandate as a regulatory agency for broadcasti ...

(CRTC) approved CJRN 710 Inc.'s application to increase CKEY-FM transmitter from 8,670 watts to 19,700 watts. The Commission also approved the application to amend the broadcasting licence for CKEY-FM by authorizing the licensee to add a transmitter at St. Catharines, operating on frequency 101.1 MHz (channel 266A) with an effective radiated power of 150 watts with a callsign CKEY-FM-1. The Commission notes that this transmitter has been operating on an experimental basis for some time and is a co-channel, synchronous repeater of CKEY-FM Fort Erie. On November 14, 1997, the dance format was dropped in favour of a

modern AC Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet sto ...

format (which later shifted to

Hot AC Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, qui ...

), branded as ''The River''. In 2001, a change of

ownership Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as title, which may be separated and held by different ...

of CJRN, CKEY-FM and CFLZ-FM to the Niagara Broadcasting Corporation was approved. The company would now be owned by several members of the Dancy family. On September 6, 2002, at 6 am, the Hot AC format moved to sister station CFLZ-FM, and CKEY adopted a

Rhythmic Top 40 The Rhythmic chart (also called Rhythmic Airplay, and previously named Rhythmic Songs, Rhythmic Top 40 and CHR/Rhythmic) is an airplay chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The chart tracks and measures the airplay of songs played on ...

format branded as ''WiLD 101'' The station had a

joint sales agreement In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it is a sort of lease or tim ...

(JSA) with the U.S.-based radio broadcaster

Citadel Communications Citadel Communications Ltd. is an American private broadcasting company. It is based in Bronxville, New York and owns 1 low-power television station on which it operates a regional 24-hour cable news channel. The company was founded in 1982 by ...

, under which the company handled advertising sales for CKEY-FM alongside its

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...

stations, in exchange for a share of the revenue. An intervention against the renewal of CKEY-FM's licence was filed by a representative of a competing station in Buffalo, who accused the station of being programmed by Citadel in violation of CRTC regulations (which require all broadcast undertakings to be "operated in fact by the licensee itself"). CKEY-FM stated that it did contract some of Citadel's Buffalo personnel to produce programming overseen by its local staff, and denied that Citadel had assumed all of the station's operations. The CRTC found that the JSA was in fact limited to advertising sales services paid for by the station, and that Citadel was not outright operating the station. However, the CRTC did take issue with the amount of locally-oriented news and information that the station was broadcasting.

Top 40

By 2005, the station moved to its current

format, and later on, the station changed its branding to ''Z101'' on April 1, 2007. It was the only "Wild"-branded station in Canada. On December 19, 2005, the CRTC approved the transfer of ownership and control of CJRN 710 Inc. (CJRN Niagara Falls, CKEY-FM Fort Erie and CKEY-FM-1

St. Catharines St. Catharines is the largest city in Canada's Niagara Region and the sixth largest urban area in the province of Ontario. As of 2016, it has an area of , 136,803 residents, and a metropolitan population of 406,074. It lies in Southern Ontario ...

) from Niagara Broadcasting Corp. (controlled by David Dancy) to Northguard Capital Corp. (owned and controlled by Andrew Ferri). This approval also covered the transfer to Northguard of 788813 Ontario Inc. (CFLZ-FM

), once it became a wholly owned subsidiary of CJRN 710 Inc. Northguard would then amalgamate both entities to continue the operation of the undertakings under the name, CJRN 710 Inc. 2005-1146-1 (December 19, 2005) The CRTC has continued to express concern with CKEY's programming, calling attention in particular to the station's seeming failure to comply with its licence condition requiring a minimum three hours per week of locally oriented news programming. In its 2007 licence renewal, the station was only granted a two-year licence period.

Z-101

CKEY was a reporter to the American

panel on

Mediabase Mediabase is a music industry service that monitors radio station airplay in 180 US and Canadian markets. Mediabase publishes music charts and data based on the most played songs on terrestrial and satellite radio, and provides in-depth analyti ...

and Nielsen BDS (and also reported on the Canadian top 40 panel on Nielsen BDS), but in 2005, CKEY-FM moved to the American

panel on Mediabase and Nielsen BDS. The station has continued to lean rhythmic even after shifting to mainstream top 40. Another station,

CKBT-FM CKBT-FM is a Canadian radio station broadcasting at 91.5 FM in Kitchener, Ontario. The station broadcasts a CHR/Top 40 format branded as ''91.5 The Beat'', with studios & offices located in Kitchener, However, its transmitter is south of Ayr. Th ...

Kitchener Kitchener may refer to: People * Earl Kitchener, a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom ** Herbert Kitchener, 1st Earl Kitchener (1850–1916), British Field Marshal and 1st Earl Kitchener ** Henry Kitchener, 2nd Earl Kitchener (1846–1937) ...

(which debuted as Rhythmic Top 40 in 2004, only to go top 40 in 2007), retains the rhythmic lean. Just like similar stations

CIDC-FM CIDC-FM (103.5 FM, ''Z103.5'') is a radio station licensed to Orangeville, Ontario. Owned by Evanov Communications, the station broadcasts a rhythmic contemporary format targeting the Greater Toronto Area. Its studios are located on Dundas St ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

and CKHZ-FM- Halifax, the station pronounces it "Zee" instead of "Zed". In the case of CFLZ, the station is most likely using the American pronunciation due to the station primarily serving Buffalo at this time (but would later shift its focus to the Niagara Region). In 2010, the

Haliburton Broadcasting Group The Haliburton Broadcasting Group was a Canadian group of FM radio stations, located primarily in smaller markets in Ontario. The company was purchased by Vista Broadcast Group in 2012.CHR per Mediabase and Nielsen BDS. As of November 2011, CKEY was moved to the Mediabase Canadian CHR panel from the U.S. CHR panel as it still reports as a Buffalo station, but it must register as a

station. In late 2011, the station adopted the CFLZ-FM callsign which had been used by its sister station, now known as CJED-FM. As the station's signal has always targeted the Buffalo market and does not fully cover the Niagara Region, the station applied to the CRTC and received approval to deploy a co-channel repeater (CFLZ-FM-1) that is located in south St. Catharines. On April 23, 2012,

Vista Broadcast Group Vista Radio Ltd. (also formerly known as Vista Broadcast Group) is a Canadian radio broadcasting company. The company only owned stations in British Columbia until 2007, when it expanded outside the province by acquiring an existing station in Ye ...

, which owns a number of radio stations in western Canada, announced an agreement to acquire the station and CJED-FM from Haliburton Broadcasting, in cooperation with Westerkirk Capital. The transaction was approved by the CRTC on October 19, 2012. As a result of ongoing issues with the St. Catharines repeater causing interference, Vista had filed an application with the

CRTC The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; french: Conseil de la radiodiffusion et des télécommunications canadiennes, links=) is a public organization in Canada with mandate as a regulatory agency for broadcasti ...

to take it off the air and remove it from the licence.

2Day FM

On September 20, 2013, at noon, after playing " This Is What It Feels Like" by

Armin van Buuren Armin Jozef Jacobus Daniël van Buuren ( , ; born 25 December 1976) is a Dutch DJ and record producer from Leiden, South Holland. Since 2001, he has hosted '' A State of Trance'' (ASOT), a weekly radio show, which is broadcast to nearly 40&n ...

, CFLZ shifted its brand to the ''2Day FM'' brand, simulcasting with sister station CJED-FM. The first song on "2Day" was "

Blurred Lines "Blurred Lines" is a song by American singer Robin Thicke featuring American rappers T.I. and Pharrell Williams from the former's sixth studio album of the same name (2013). Solely produced by Williams, it was released as the album's lead si ...

" by

Robin Thicke Robin Alan Thicke (born March 10, 1977) is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. He is best known for his 2013 hit single " Blurred Lines", which is one of the best-selling singles of all time. At the 56th Annual Grammy Awards, h ...

. In May 2014, the licence for CFLZ-FM's repeater (CFLZ-FM-1 101.1 MHz) in St. Catharines was revoked. Vista says the transmitter was shut down last September. 101

On April 30, 2014, Vista filed an application with the CRTC to amend the station's broadcasting licence. On December 8, 2014, the CRTC denied the application and cited Vista for being in non-compliance with various conditions of the licence including converting the station to a full-time rebroadcasting transmitter for CJED-FM without prior approval by the commission. New conditions were placed upon the licensee. CFLZ-FM was taken off the air shortly thereafter. It was returned to air on December 19, 2014, apparently continuing to simulcast to CJED-FM.

Juice FM

On July 15, 2016, at 6:13 am, CFLZ discontinued simulcasting CJED-FM and switched to Vista Radio's "Juice" format, broadcasting an adult hits format consisting of hits from the 1980s to today. On January 15, 2018, Byrnes Communications Inc. acquired CFLZ and sister station CJED-FM with approval from the CRTC. Byrnes Communications took control of CFLZ on February 1, 2018.

More FM

On March 1, 2018, the station re-branded as ''101.1 More FM'', playing songs from the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. Because of the station's programming, CFLZ competes with WHTT-FM, WBUF and

WGRF WGRF (96.9 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station in Buffalo, New York, branded as "97 Rock". The station is owned by Cumulus Media and has a radio format playing classic rock, mostly from the 1970s and 1980s. WGRF competes for classic rock list ...

in Buffalo and

CIXL-FM CIXL-FM is a Canadian radio station, broadcasting in Welland, Ontario. It uses the on-air brand name ''91.7 Giant FM'', and broadcasts a classic rock format at 91.7 MHz. It is one of the few commercial FM radio stations on its frequency that can ...

Welland Welland is a city in the Regional Municipality of Niagara in Southern Ontario, Canada. As of 2021, it had a population of 55,750. The city is in the centre of Niagara and located within a half-hour driving distance to Niagara Falls, Niagara-o ...

. In September 2019, CFLZ announced that their signal might be temporarily weakened due to

work. The work would be done to improve the present transmitter and allow CFLZ to broadcast at 50,000 Watts full-time. At the time of the announcement, the only "50,000 Watters" in the area were

CHTZ-FM CHTZ-FM (97.7 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, serving the Niagara Region. It is owned by Bell Media and it broadcasts an active rock format, branded as ''97.7 HTZ-FM'' (pronounced "Hits FM"). CHTZ share ...

and

CHRE-FM CHRE-FM (105.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, serving Niagara Region. It is owned by Bell Media and is branded as ''Move 105.7''. CHRE broadcasts an adult contemporary format. CHRE shares studios with its ...

. In February 2020, Byrnes announced that it would enter into an advertising sales partnership with Radio One Buffalo—owner of

oldies Oldies is a term for musical genres such as pop music, rock and roll, doo-wop, surf music (broadly characterized as classic rock and pop rock) from the second half of the 20th century, specifically from around the mid-1950s to the 1980s, as wel ...

station

WECK WECK (1230 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Cheektowaga, New York and serving the Buffalo–Niagara Falls Metropolitan Area. The station airs a locally-produced and locally hosted oldies music format. The studios, offices an ...

—to sell advertising for CFLZ and CJED in Buffalo.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cflz-Fm Flz Fort Erie, Ontario Radio stations established in 1986 1986 establishments in Ontario