GBH has accepted an offer to sell the building in Woods Hole, Mass., that is home to its radio station CAI, a GBH spokesperson told Current.
The move has sparked an attempt by the local community to buy the building. GBH, which owns CAI, says the move is necessary due to the station’s budget deficit and the cost of running the office.
The deal had not closed as of Monday afternoon. GBH did not provide specifics to Current about the sale price or buyer.
“The decision to sell the current CAI building was made in order to build a more robust and sustainable financial future,” the spokesperson said. “We hope to remain responsible stewards of our resources while remaining a trusted source of local news coverage.”
CAI loses about $500,000 every year and has lost more than $2 million in the last five years, bills GBH is responsible for, the spokesperson said.
GBH does not yet know where CAI staff will relocate, but the spokesperson said they will remain in the existing building until a new location in the community is found. There are 13 full-time positions at CAI.
Programming will not be interrupted, the spokesperson said.
The property, located near the town’s public library, has historical and symbolic value, said Jay Allison, founder of Atlantic Public Media, which has space in the building and collaborates with CAI on producing local content.
Allison’s organization originally secured the station’s license, which is now held by GBH. He said his effort to launch CAI started eight years before the station signed on in 2000.
Allison penned an essay about the building sale, arguing that it undermined localism and trust as the decision was made without consideration of locals’ opinions. He said the potential sale should have been brought to the community sooner and that if the communities served by the station are not being honored and considered in the decision, “then the corollary to that is trust is eroded.”
“Trust is what public media is built on,” Allison said.
The GBH spokesperson said staff was notified before the news became public.
In a response to a question from Current about Allison’s essay and comments, a GBH spokesperson pointed to costs.
“The station’s budget deficit and the cost of running the office requires us to sell it, hopefully to a local buyer who appreciates it as much as we all do,” the spokesperson said.
GBH itself has faced financial difficulties, laying off 31 people earlier this year amid a $7 million budget gap.
The CAI building, known as the Captain Davis House, was constructed around 1840 and has housed the station since 2000, according to the Woods Hole Community Association.
The association has pledged $300,000 in a campaign to try buying the building itself, according to its website.
“It’s a little bit of a far-fetched idea: that the community can raise the $1.7 million to buy this building, and that WGBH would even pause in the sale process long enough to allow the community a chance at it,” the association said on its website. “But jeez. We should try, right?”
The GBH spokesperson said that a purchase and sale agreement have been signed but that anyone can submit a backup offer.