The good news: KRON's 1001 Van Ness building is massive, historic, and in one of the most retail friendly corridors of the city--we all know the real estate value of SF's pristine property--location, location, location, and the land alone could fetch multi-millions worth of cash.
The bad news: Young/Media General, KRON's owner, has heavily mortgaged its 415 media palace to the point where only a heavy hitter would be available to buy the property and take over its massive debt.
I can think of at least two big, huge media companies but there's no monopoly on who can pay the most.
And we know right nearby the huge hospital going up in the space that used to house the old Jack Tar/Cathedral hotel.
The intrigue has only just begun.
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Yo Richie: Did you notice that Darya Big Boobs wasn't on this AM? Perhaps she's getting beauty sleep for when she tries to save her job in front of everyone today.
ReplyDeleteJames Fletcher said Darya is actually stuck up in the Sierra. Dumb bitch should have listened to her weather girls for once.
DeleteConfirmed: KRON moving to 900 Front later this year.
ReplyDeleteConfirmed: KRON will still be garbage.
DeleteIs this really a surprise? Media General bought KRON as a portfolio grab with other stations as its newspaper holdings in this era lag. It was for market identification for shareholder benefit.
ReplyDeleteAlso, Young has been dead-and-buried since losing its NBC affiliation and NBC didn't want KRON back or needed it. San Jose turned out to be an okay market for the affiliation. Will FOX buy the real estate? Time will tell. Depends on how much KTVU slips into the sludge, muck and mire over the next three quarters. This give KRON a chance to sixe up the real estate market, make some millions in a land grab and FOX will start over either at 2 or its own new facility.
In this day of master control rooms operating local stations from miles away at a "hub" to stations like in Salinas that run network affiiliates in both Salinas and Santa Maria from one facility, nothing is new. In this ad and budget climate and with mainstream TV viewing going down due choices available, there's no wonder. Doing this as an independent makes sense, saves costs, expenses, talent and synergies for a station going nowhere but down.
The good old days are over. It's time to thin the herd. KRON is, and has proven to be, San Francisco's sacrificial giraffe. It's genes aren't needed and the money to surgically bring it to prominence aren't there. This is purgatory -- for now and buys time for this sick patient.
KRON is moving. Where's the intrigue?
ReplyDeleteS'probably wise; in this digital age one doesn't need a 3-story "palace" on a main drag to run a TV station; half a warehouse in an industrial backwater would serve technically, and the ABC Broadcast center is perhaps even a step up: they'll have a view, and they'll be right next to the other guys. One thing a TV station does not need is a "main street" address; sell the Van Ness real estate and use the $$ to keep people on the air.
ReplyDeleteThe $$ will never be used to keep people on the air. It will go into either executive bonus pockets or (less likely) value to shareholders. Nothing goes to benefit the public/customer any more if it can be avoided.
DeleteNumbers, please. Shouldn't be hard for an ace reporter like you to determine the actual size of the mortgage on 1001 Van Ness. Or are you just sort of guessing at this?
ReplyDeleteMILLIONS.
DeleteI don't have the exact figure, I'm not a real-estate agent and I didn't coordinate KRON's re-fi's, suffice to say that building has loads of debt on it.