Nassau's radio stations sold at auction

WILMINGTON, Del. — Carlisle Capital Corporation, whose principal Bill Binnie of Rye began building a media company after losing a run for the United States Senate in 2010, topped the bidding for 30 radio stations in New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine at $12.5-million when all that remained of Nassau Broadcasting Partners' holdings were auctioned in bankruptcy proceedings yesterday.

Among the 10 stations in New Hampshire five broadcast to the Lakes Region from offices in Gilford — WLNH-FM (98.3), WLKZ-FM (104.9), WJYY-FM (105.5), WNHW-FM (93.3) and WEMJ-AM (1490).

Nassau Broadcasting, headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey operated 49 radio stations in Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Massachusetts as well as as the three states of Northern New England.

Last September, Goldman Sachs Lending Partners, Fortress Credit Opportunities and P.E. Capital, LLC forced Nassau Broadcasting into bankruptcy in federal court in Delaware, claiming they were owed $83.8-million. A month later the involuntary bankruptcy was converted to a voluntary bankruptcy when Nassau Broadcasting persuaded its lenders that disrupting operations at its stations would ultimately damage its creditors. While managing the business and operating the stations, Nassau Broadcasting sought and received the approval of the bankruptcy court in February to auction its properties.

When the auction was held earlier this month, 19 stations were sold to five bidders and then adjourned, leaving the New England stations to be sold yesterday. Goldman Sachs acquired 11 AM and FM stations in Pennsylvania and New Jersey for $38.7-million. Manning Broadcasting purchased three stations in Maryland for $6.4-million, about a third of the price Nassau Broadcasting paid for two of them in 2004.Three stations on Cape Cod fetched $2.7-million, one station in Maine went for $250,000 and another for $150,000.

According to Radio-Info, an on-line industry news service, when the auction resumed yesterday Carlisle Capital and Vertical Capital Partners, LLC of Hanover submitted a joint bid of $12.5-million for the 30 stations. With the consent of Goldman Sachs, the offer was accepted as "the highest or otherwise best bid."

Jeff Shapiro is the principal of Vertical Capital Partners is the president of Great Eastern Radio, LLC and Border Broadcasting, Inc., which own radio stations in the Upper Valley and Vermont.

Neither Binnie nor Shapiro could be reached for comment yesterday. However, industry pundits expect the pair to divide the stations.

The acquisitions are Binnie's first foray into radio. In 2011 he purchased two low-power television stations, WYCN-LP in Nashua and WZMY-TV in Derry, changing its call letters to WBIN-TV. Last year, TVNewsCheck, a trade website, reported that Binnie described WBIN-TV as "the cornerstone" of the company he was creating.