Chatham-Kent
Chatham-Kent ( 2021 population: 104,316)Ontario. Owned by Blackburn Radio, the station broadcasts a classic hits format under the name ''95.1/100.7 Cool FM''. The station broadcasts on 95.1 MHz, and operates a
rebroadcaster
A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater (two-way radio) or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats (or tran ...
serving the nearby Windsor market, CKUE-FM-1, on 100.7 MHz.
CKUE's main signal is broadcast from a transmitter tower a few kilometres west of the community of Chatham, Ontario, with an effective radiated power of 42,000 watts.
History
The Rock (1999-2014)
The station began operations on October 6, 1999 under the ownership of Bea-Ver Communications, broadcasting an
active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock stations play a balance of new hard rock songs with valued classic rock favorites, normally with an emphasis on the harder edge o ...
format on 94.3 FM. On May 4, 2002, CKUE switched frequencies with its sister station
CKSY-FM
CKSY-FM (94.3 MHz) is a commercial radio station in Chatham-Kent, Ontario. Owned by Blackburn Radio, it broadcasts an adult contemporary format for Southwestern Ontario. CKSY is co-owned with classic rock station CKUE-FM and country station ...
to obtain its current frequency of 95.1 FM.
CKUE began operating a synchronized on-channel rebroadcaster serving the nearby Windsor market, CKUE-FM-1, in March 2004 from an antenna mounted on the top of the 26-floor Solidarity Tower Co-Op apartment building on the city's east end. In 2005, Blackburn Radio acquired CKUE along with
sister station
In broadcasting, sister stations or sister channels are radio or television stations operated by the same company, either by direct ownership or through a management agreement.
Radio sister stations will often have different formats, and somet ...
CKSY-FM. In September 2006, 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 an application by Blackburn to move the Windsor signal from 95.1 to 100.7 MHz. This change allowed the Windsor and Chatham transmitters to increase their transmitter power.
During the 2004-2005, and 2005-2006 seasons of the Ontario Hockey League, 95.1 provided live coverage of Windsor Spitfires games, with Shadd Dales on play-by-play and Brendan McGuire on colour. They returned to CKLW in 2006.
LiteFM (2014-2015)
On January 30, 2014, at 6 p.m., CKUE-FM ended its
active rock
Active rock is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations across the United States and Canada. Active rock stations play a balance of new hard rock songs with valued classic rock favorites, normally with an emphasis on the harder edge o ...
format and switched to soft adult contemporary, branded as ''LiteFM''. Station management cited increased competition from Detroit based stations as reasoning for the change.
Cool FM (2015-present)
On April 16, 2015, at 10 a.m., CKUE-FM flipped again, this time to variety hits as ''Cool FM''; Blackburn Radio's general manager Walter Ploegman stated that the "Lite" format was characterized by listeners as being "too soft and sleepy", and that the new format would be targeted to a middle-aged adult demographic that is "on the go, active, and looking for fun".
In 2016, a new low-powered FM station began testing in nearby Ferndale, Michigan, also on 100.7 MHz. Named
WFCB-LP
WFCB-LP (100.7 FM) is a community radio station in Ferndale, Michigan, owned by Ferndale Radio, Incorporated, formerly known as Underwood V Radio, Incorporated (pronounced "Underwood Five Radio"), having launched in 2016. Ferndale Radio was c ...
, the station broadcasts at just 100 watts at 81 feet above the ground, and may be subject to interference from CKUE-FM-1, due to its vastly higher power (3840 watts average, 9000 peak), and the fact that its antenna atop Solidarity Tower is adjacent to the Detroit River, and therefore, only a few hundred feet from the
Canada–United States border
The border between Canada and the United States is the longest international border in the world. The terrestrial boundary (including boundaries in the Great Lakes, Atlantic, and Pacific coasts) is long. The land border has two sections: Can ...
(which sits in the middle of the river).
In the summer of 2018, the "Cool" format was modified from variety hits to a more
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
-oriented classic hits format. The station now uses the tagline "Great Hits and Real Classics" rather than "We Play it All".