Telefarm Towers

Radio and television broadcasting site in Minnesota

This article needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (October 2021)

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Telefarm Towers

Both masts from the ground.

Location within Minnesota

General information
Type| TV & Radio transmission towers
Location| Shoreview, Ramsey County, Minnesota, U.S.
Coordinates| North mast: 45°03′0″N 93°08′22.0″W﻿ / ﻿45.05000°N 93.139444°W﻿ / 45.05000; -93.139444, South mast: 45°03′44.0″N 93°08′22.0″W
Owner| Telefarm, Inc.
Height| North Mast: (1,394 feet (425 m)), South Mast: (1,361 feet (415 m))

The Telefarm Towers is a transmission site for FM radio and television broadcasting in Shoreview, Minnesota consisting of two guyed towers.

The towers, called Shoreview Towers by local residents, are owned by Telefarm, Inc., a joint venture of Twin Cities broadcasters CBS Television Stations (WCCO channel 4), Hubbard Broadcasting (KSTP channel 5, KSTC channel 5.2, KSTP-FM 94.5 FM, and KTMY 107.1 FM), and Tegna (KARE channel 11) for the transmission of digital television and FM radio throughout the Greater Twin Cities.

The telefarm tower complex and KMSP tower.

Along with Sinclair Broadcast Group's WUCW (channel 23), Minnesota Public Radio flagship station KNOW-FM (91.1 MHz) are additional tenants on the tower.

## History

[edit]

The towers were built in the 1970s for analog television, and were replacements for a single "candelabra" style tower that collapsed prior to completion in 1971, killing six workers on the tower and one on the ground.[1]

Telefarm Towers Shoreview (Shoreview, Minnesota)

The towers were upgraded at the turn of the century to support digital TV transmitters to meet Federal Communications Commission requirements. Because each antenna assembly weighs many tons, the towers had to be strengthened. Work took longer than expected, and KSTP notably used its original broadcast tower along University Avenue in Saint Paul, Minnesota for digital transmission for about a year starting in late 1999 before construction was finished.

Digital television upgrades to the South facility were completed in 2000 and the North facility was finished in 2001.[2][3]

During the summer of 2019, an antenna section on the north tower was removed. Television station KSTC moved to RF channel 30, from its previous channel of 45. This was due to the spectrum reallocation of the late 2010s. This move was completed by early September.[4] On October 4, 2021, the new transmitter was installed on the north tower.

## FM

[edit]

FM radio stations  Frequency  | Call sign  | Name  | Format  | Owner

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91.1
91.1 HD-2
91.1 HD-3 | KNOW | MPR News
Radio Heartland
BBC World Service
| News/Talk
Folk Music
News/Talk | Minnesota Public Radio
94.5
94.5 HD-2 | KSTP | KS95
Skor North | Hot AC
Sports | Hubbard Broadcasting
107.1
107.1 HD-2 | KTMY | myTalk 107.1
74 WDGY | Female-Oriented Talk
Oldies

## Television

[edit]

Channel  | Callsign  | Affiliation  | Branding  | Subchannels  | Owner

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|
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(Virtual)  | Channel  | Programming
4.1  | WCCO | CBS | WCCO 4 News | 4.2
4.3
4.4  | Start TV
Dabl
Fave TV  | CBS News and Stations
5.1  | KSTP | ABC | 5 Eyewitness News | 5.5
5.7  | TrueReal
Heroes & Icons | Hubbard Broadcasting
5.2  | KSTC | Independent | 45 TV | 5.3
5.4
5.6  | Me-TV
Antenna TV
This TV
11.1  | KARE | NBC | KARE 11 | 11.2
11.3
11.4
11.5  | Court TV
True Crime Network
Quest
Circle | Tegna Inc.
23.1  | WUCW | CW | The CW Twin Cities | 23.2
23.3
23.4
23.5  | Comet
Charge!
TBD
Rewind TV | Sinclair Broadcast Group

## See also

[edit]

* KMSP Tower - another major tower in Shoreview
* List of tallest structures

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "1971 TV tower collapse survivor shares story". presspubs.com. 18 October 2016.
2. ^ "Company News". archive.ph. 2006-10-17. Archived from the original on 2006-10-17. Retrieved 2022-01-12.
3. ^ "TV towers prepare for digital overhaul". www.bizjournals.com. January 30, 1998. Retrieved 2022-01-12.
4. ^ "KSTC's move to new transmitter delayed until Aug. 2". KSTP.com. 19 June 2019.

## External links

[edit]

* "Listing 1023882". Antenna Structure Registration database. U.S. Federal Communications Commission. (Tower 1)
* "Listing 1023883". Antenna Structure Registration database. U.S. Federal Communications Commission. (Tower 2)