A Farmville Flip For EMF

As 2021 began, Francis Wood and his Colonial Broadcasting Co. agreed to sell Farmville, Va.-based WFLO-AM 870 & FM 95.7 to Educational Media Foundation.

Now, EMF has decided to spin the AM associated with this transaction.

The sale of WFLO-AM is hardly surprising, given EMF’s stable of FM properties used for its Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) KLOVE network and its Worship Music Air1 sibling.

In this case, Heart of Virginia Communications is acquiring the AM, and is paying EMF $75,000 to obtain the facility. A 10% escrow deposit has been made to Broadcasting Properties LLC, which is holding it on behalf of EMF.

At closing, EMF will agree to lease tower space to Heart of Virginia for WFLO-AM, thus allowing it to remain at its longtime transmitter home.

Heart of Virginia is headquartered in Farmville and is headed by Donna M. VanCleave. She is the former Vice Chancellor for Administrative and Financial Services at Virginia Community College System, a role she held through December 2018. Before that, VanCleave (née Mottley) was VP for Finance and Administration at Radford University. From 1997-2006, she was the Finance Director for the Virginia Lottery.

The sale price of WFLO-AM is one-tenth of the total value of the transaction EMF engaged in to acquire WFLO-FM.

Both Buyer and Seller were represented by Jon Yinger of Broadcast Properties, LLC.

An Exit From Broadcasting Brings Another EMF Market Entry