Roxanne Casey, station manager at CanoeFM, said she wouldn’t take no for an answer after spending the past two years lobbying the Canadian Radio and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) for an updated broadcasting licence.
The federal body put a moratorium on processing and approving new applications in August 2023, while working to modernize regulatory plans for Canadian broadcasting. Casey was approximately six months deep on a proposal to bolster Canoe’s radio signal across Haliburton County.
Using funds raised through its popular Radio Bingo game, the station wanted to address one of many dead zones across the region where residents struggle to get a signal. Minden, Wilberforce, Gooderham and Cardiff were all considered.
A two-week pilot project in spring 2023 led to Casey applying for a secondary transmitter to be installed on a tower along Scotch Line Road in Minden, with an aim of improving service to people in the southwestern portions of the County. On Feb. 3, the station received special approval from Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) after the CRTC ratified an exemption.
“It almost didn’t happen – at the time [of the moratorium announcement] they said there wasn’t going to be any new licences issues period. We had to send a letter to say we had an ongoing application in process, we had gotten prices, done a lot of work and spent a lot of money. It all would have been for nothing if we weren’t able to move ahead,” Casey told The Highlander March 17.
Now, listeners will be able to tune into Canoe on both 100.9 and 97.1. Casey said the licence for the latter runs until 2032.
Testing conducted in 2023 was vital to the project’s approval, Casey noted, with data gathered from specialized equipment revealing much of Minden experienced unreliable reception due to challenging terrain.
“They recognized that rural areas like Minden deserve a strong, reliable signal to access local news, programming, and community information,” Casey said.
All told, the project cost the station just under $43,000. “It’s the biggest project we’ve done for a while.”
Casey said none of it would have been possible without Radio Bingo. Every Tuesday for the past 10 years, the station has broadcast games over the airwaves giving locals a chance to win big. After prizes are dished out, what’s left is split between Canoe and important community causes. To date, around 50 non-profits have benefitted to the tune of approximately $600,000.
“The money goes to our food banks, the Haliburton County Heat Bank – we try to support all the not-for-profits that might need a leg up. Most have received something from us over the years,” Casey said.
She hopes to expand the station’s reach even more in future, mentioning Cardiff and Tory Hill as areas in need of better service. Nothing is imminent, Casey said, with the CRTC moratorium in-place until at least August.
“We will look at something else – it all depends on funding. It’s a really big process, it took us two years to move forward with this project, but the conversations were going on much longer than that,” she said.
Immediate focuses include improving the station’s website and attracting more volunteers. Casey said Canoe is developing an online portal that will highlight available openings and offer tasters on various roles. There will also be a virtual sign-up sheet for those who want to get involved.
“We’ve had people move away, everyone is getting older… we need to look at how we can engage younger volunteers to help out and take more of an interest,” Casey said.
A ribbon cutting will be held in Minden celebrating the improved service in the spring.
