Logan radio station hits 30-year milestone

This radio station has been taking requests for more than 30 years and still feels like a friend to many.

The original studio was in a caravan at Springwood.

LOGAN radio has hit a milestone with its easy-listening music community station chalking up a 30-year anniversary.

Radio Logan Incorporated was granted its licence in September 1988 with the start of permanent transmission on November 18, 1988.

Logan Incorporated was established in 1984 after Logan City Council put out a call for interested parties to set up a community radio station.

The push for a municipal radio station was spearheaded by then Division 10 councillor Tom O’Neil after Logan gained “city” status.

Station manager Terry Blacker said before 1984, Logan residents had no voice of their own.

Station manager Terry Blacker in the studio today ... and

Those were the days ... back in 1984, this is what the inside of the station’s original broadcast panel looked like.

“Within the first year of the organisation’s establishment, council gave access to broadcast from the council premises at 4 Karrawatha St, Springwood, where the water towers are situated, which happens to be the highest point in Logan City,” Mr Blacker said.

“We stayed on this land for seven years; this site is where the transmitter is still situated, along with a number of others, on top of one of the water towers.”

The first on-air announcer was David Jull, who, before entering politics for the Liberal Party, worked in commercial radio and television.

And since then, the station has grown its audience with listeners tuning in to hear long-time announcer Ted Thirkill, the station’s longest-serving member who presents Ted’s Memories every Saturday.

FM101’s Longest-serving station presenter Ted Thirkill has been presenting Ted’s Memories every Saturday for 30 years.

In 1992, the station moved to Logan Central so a new police station could be built the state government wanted to build a new police precinct, so did a deal with Logan City Council.

101FM Logan City operates out of its offices in Logan Central.

Council would get the land and premises of the old police station, plus two other properties in return for another parcel of land further down the road on which to build the new police Station.

The deal was made, and as council knew how we were trying to find a more suitable place to relocate our studio to, offered us the use of the old police station at 8 Railway Pde, Logan Central.

The radio station office has been these since 1993.

The station’s call sign is 4CBL which aligns it with the areas of primary service: the communities of Logan, Beenleigh and Beaudesert. However, its signal is heard south to the New South Wales border, north to the Sunshine Coast, east to the islands of Moreton Bay and West to the Toowoomba Ranges. Today with modern technology, we are able to broadcast globally on 101fm.com.au