Oldies radio station stops airing locally

CALICO • Nostalgic tunes from classic bands like The Beach Boys or artists like Elvis Presley have stopped gracing the airwaves in Barstow and the surrounding areas.

That’s because local radio station Cruisin’ Oldies (105.3 FM), which in the past had stopped airing intermittently due to technical problems, has permanently pulled out of Barstow, according to Steve Garsh, market manager for El Dorado Broadcasters, which operated the radio station.

According to Garsh, the station was taken off air to be moved to Palm Springs because there were few advertisers and listeners in the Barstow area.

“It’s simply a business decision,” said Garsh.

Newberry Springs resident Janie Cheney said she listened to Cruisin’ Oldies every morning on her drive to work at Calico Ghost Town. When the station suddenly stopped airing, Cheney said, she and her friends who were fellow listeners felt like they were left hanging.

“There were quite a few of us that went, ‘What happened?’” she said. “It was one of my favorite stations.”

The station’s transmitter site and studio located in Calico Peak were shut down about a month ago, Garsh said. No staff were laid off as a result of the closing, he noted.

For now, Cheney said she’s found another station to help fill the void — an oldies station out of Baker called Good Time Oldies and Great Rock and Roll (106.9 FM). However due to the distance, the signal can be spotty, she noted.

“I would like to see an oldies station come back,” she said.

Contact the writer:
(760) 256-4122 or elee@desertdispatch.com