SE MN Broadcast Center Sold – Commitment to Community Remains

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Preston, MN (KROC-AM News) - The broadcasting equipment may be leaving but a small-town radio station in southeastern Minnesota is standing by its commitment to serve the community.

Townsquare Media has sold the building that has housed its broadcast operations in Preston for many years and is consolidating the computer servers that store the music and commercials and other broadcasting gear for KFIL-FM at its regional headquarters in Rochester. The sale of the building closed on Friday.

Shannon Knoepke, Market President for Townsquare Media in Southern Minnesota, says,

The physical move to Rochester will not impact the radio station's many listeners in Fillmore County, "As we embark on a new chapter by selling our building in Preston, I want to reassure each and every one of you that KFIL is not bidding farewell to Fillmore County. For over five decades, KFIL has woven itself into the very fabric of Fillmore County, providing you with your favorite Country Classic Hits, the central Agricultural News, and exhilarating coverage of High School Football, Boy's and Girls Basketball, and more."

Knoepke notes that she grew up in Fountain and graduated from Preston-Fountain High School in the late 1980s. She stresses that, while the radio station's physical location may be changing, "our commitment to serving you remains unwavering. We are dedicated to continuing the tradition of delivering the quality programming that you've come to expect from us. Our roots run deep in Fillmore County, and we are here to stay."

Townsquare Media continues to have an Account Executive for Fillmore County who is a resident of the county. Morgan Klomps lives in Spring Valley and is available to address the marketing and promotional needs of Fillmore County businesses and organizations.

According to Wikipedia, KFIL-FM went on the air in 1971 after founder O.B Borgen was granted a broadcast license to serve Fillmore County. His sons, Michael and Jeffrey Borgen, became the owners of the radio station in 1991 and later sold it to Cumulus Broadcasting in 2003. KFIL-FM then became part of Townsquare Media Southern Minnesota in 2013.

The new owner of the property is a company with a long history in Preston. Preston Protein Products currently operates in a building that is located directly north of the former KFIL studios. The firm was started in 1910 as the Preston Creamery Association, which grew over the years and was purchased by Johnson Farms in 2020 to become Preston Protein Products.

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