CHVR-FM
CHVR-FM is a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 96.7 FM in Pembroke, Ontario. The station airs a country music format branded as Pure Country 96.7; prior to May 28, 2019 it was branded Star 96.7.
 | |
| City | Pembroke, Ontario |
|---|---|
| Branding | Pure Country 96.7 |
| Slogan | Pembroke's Pure Country |
| Frequency | 96.7 MHz (FM) |
| First air date | 1942 |
| Format | country music |
| ERP | 100 kWs |
| HAAT | 157.5 meters (517 ft) |
| Class | C1 |
| Call sign meaning | CH Valley Radio |
| Former frequencies | 1340 kHz (AM) (1942-1948) 1350 AM (1948-1996) |
| Owner | Bell Media |
The station was originally launched in 1942 as AM 1340 CHOV by Ottawa Valley Broadcasting. In the late 1940s CHOV moved to AM 1350. In 1961, Ottawa Valley also launched CHOV-TV. Workers at CHOV unionized and labour disputes at the channel led to management closing the station and selling it to new owners. The television station was purchased by J. Conrad Lavigne in 1977, adopting the callsign CHRO and becoming part of the MCTV system in 1980. In 1981, Mid-Canada Communications also purchased the radio station; it subsequently adopted the CHRO callsign as well.
In 1990, the MCTV television stations were sold to Baton Broadcasting and the radio stations were sold to Pelmorex. With the TV and radio stations now under different ownership again, the radio station adopted its current CHVR callsign. In 1991, Pelmorex also acquired CKOA in Arnprior and CKOB in Renfrew, both of which were converted to rebroadcasters of CHVR, known as CHVR-1 Renfrew and CHVR-2 Arnprior.
CHVR moved to its current frequency in 1996.[1] Due to its signal strength, the Renfrew and Arnprior AM rebroadcasters were both discontinued. Prior to the change, the CBC, known as CBCD, had occupied 96.7 FM in Pembroke and changed to 92.5 FM.[2] The 1350 allocation would relocate to Gatineau, Quebec, where it was used for a local transmitter for Montreal's CIRA-FM from 2009[3] to 2015.
The station was acquired by Telemedia in 1998, and Telemedia was in turn bought out by Standard Broadcasting in 2002.
In 2005 and 2006, Standard Broadcasting carried out a series of downsizing measures at CHVR-FM, eliminating the station's traffic and copy departments (centralizing them at CKQB-FM Ottawa) and downsizing the station's newsroom to one full-time and one part-time staffer.
In October 2007, Astral Media acquired Standard Broadcasting's terrestrial radio and television assets, including CHVR.
In July 2013, CHVR-FM was acquired by Bell Media, a subsidiary of Bell Canada (the company which already owns CTV and local CTV Two outlet CHRO-TV) as a result of a buyout of Astral Media.[4]
On May 28, 2019, as part of a country-wide format reorganization by Bell, CHVR rebranded as Pure Country 96.7.[5]
