OTTAWA – The radio market of Hamilton and Burlington in Southern Ontario won’t be tuning in to a new station anytime soon after the CRTC determined that the area cannot sustain any additional new commercial radio stations at this time.
The Commission said Wednesday that it will therefore return the application originally filed by Byrnes Communications Inc. for a broadcasting licence to operate a commercial radio station in the area, and will not issue a call for new applications.
In a lengthy dissent, Commissioner Raj Shoan said that the decision “does a disservice to the residents of Burlington”, noting that “Burlington deserves a Burlington-focused radio station; it is not simply an extension of Hamilton, as my colleagues have seemingly decided.”
“Forty years ago, an argument could be made that Burlington was a suburb of Hamilton; today, it is a rapidly growing and thriving community with its own identity”, he wrote. “As towns and cities develop their own identities and economies, I am of the view that the Commission should be prepared to grant them radio services that reflect their changing realities.”
