Station Update 1/21/26: Progress on fiber networks and automation equipment
We're making progress on our internal fiber optic network, which will create a more stable mechanism for getting KAZU's signal to our transmission tower. We received a great deal of equipment last week, and engineers are onsite this week to install.
We’re also optimistic that our new automation equipment remains on track for a mid-February installation. These machines will ensure our broadcast is aligned and synchronized.
Station Update 1/13/26
One big advantage of our new facility is that we can build more studios for producing local content. Our news team’s studio will be the first completed studio at our new facility, with two other studios following closely behind.
The news team studio will enable your familiar local voices, like Dylan Music, Lisa Ledin, Mary Jane Peters and Paul Fingerote, to get back live on the air as we complete our main studio's buildout. We don’t have a solid date on when our “on-air hosts” will return, but stay tuned. We are very excited to get these folks back on the airwaves to provide the local news, weather and traffic in the mornings and evenings.
Here is a short update on the rest of our studio progress:
- Our final big pieces of studio equipment are making their way to us through customs, and should arrive next week. This state-of-the-art equipment was built specifically for KAZU in Germany, and once we receive them our studio buildouts should quickly hit the finish line.
- Our custom-built automation computers and servers will arrive and be installed in late February, without any unforeseen delays. These systems will significantly improve our signal stability and help keep our programming synced and aligned.
We’ve heard from many listeners about some of our ongoing issues, including our signal outages and interruptions, where the beginning or end of a message or announcement gets cut off.
A quick explainer on this for those who are curious:
Our old studio had a satellite feed piped directly into the station, which is how we received NPR’s content from headquarters in D.C. We are currently trying to re-connect with that satellite from our new location using a fiber optic network. Our team is working closely with network providers and CSUMB’s campus IT department to complete this as soon as possible.
In the meantime, the signal is reaching us over wireless internet, which can be prone to delays, outages and interruptions. This is a temporary backup that is typically only used if the satellite transmission fails. Once we’re able to re-establish our connection with the satellite receiver, these issues will go away, and we’ll have a healthy amount of redundancy to avoid future interruptions.
We are closing in on the end of this project, some challenges remain, and we’ll do our best to keep updating this page as we move forward. We appreciate you sticking with us over the last couple months.
About the relocation project
KAZU is moving our studios and offices from the Cal State Monterey Bay campus to our new location in Ryan Ranch. CSUMB is growing, and our current building will be needed to support additional student space, which is wonderful news for the university community. We are grateful for our long partnership with CSUMB and look forward to continuing it from our new home.
This relocation is an important step that will allow KAZU to operate from a more modern facility and continue providing trusted public radio service for the Monterey Bay region.
We know how much you rely on KAZU, and we deeply regret any disruption this has caused. Please know that our team is giving this effort everything they’ve got — and we’re so grateful for your patience and understanding as we navigate this complex transition.