Community-supported radio waves, sparked by an idea close to four years old, will hit the Carbondale area in the near future.

Gene Turk, Paul Runge, Tom Egert and Neil Dillard participated in a ground-breaking ceremony Tuesday at 224 N. Washington to initiate the construction of WDBX 91.1 FM.

Turk said contractors can have the building ready in 45 days, and plans to broadcast are scheduled for early December.

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The new station’s format will be patterned after KDHX in St. Louis, which is run by people who are not necessarily professionals, Turk said.

KDHX is a public-access station run primarily by volunteers that operates 24 hours a day.

We can have a wide variety of music, Turk said. A lot of people have expressed an interest in hearing blues and reggae types of music.

Broadcasting ideas include a program broadcast by high-school students under supervision and a city-issue-oriented program to be broadcast the day of City Council meetings, he said.

Turk said the station is planning to have an hourly run-down of events to serve community members in the station’s six-to-10-mile radius.

WDBX will be able to reach Makanda, most of Carterville and Murphysboro as well as Carbondale, Turk said.

WDBX will have a full-time station manager and one part-time engineer. All other positions will be filled by volunteers, he said.

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Turk said the station will use a community thrift shop they have purchased, located at the corner of Jackson St. and Marion St., as means of financial support, and a newsletter will be sent out through subscriptions.

The newsletter will tell what is going on in Carbondale, he said. Items of interest and articles about the station will also be included.

The land for the station building was donated by the Bank of Carbondale, and the City of Carbondale waived one-half of its liens on the property.

Although the station is supposed to appeal to community members, Mike Plumer, a graduate assistant at WIDB, said he is displeased with the fact that the new station is taking the frequency (91.1) that WIDB had been petitioning for.

The more competition, the better, Plumer said. But I am disappointed because we spent money researching the frequency, and they took advantage of it.

I understand that it is business, but because they took the frequency, WIDB will have to invest more money to find another frequency.

Athough the University radio station is not in support of the new station, Turk said WTAO has voiced an interest in supporting WDBX.

Chris Gullett, vice president and general manager of WTAO, said his station believes WDBX will be a valuable addition to the area radio waves.

Non-commercial radio like this can provide talk shows and community issue programs that a commercial station like WTAO serving a wide area cannot, he said. We have always been a strong supporter of public radio, and we feel a station like this, supported by the community, will provide an important service.