The sudden closure of a decades-old AM radio station in Rockland County marks the end of an era during the pending sale of the once longtime community staple.

WRCR AM 1700 in Garnerville stopped broadcasting earlier this month. The station is being bought out by WABC-New York Radio’s parent company, Red Apple Media.

The Garnerville-based station traces back to the 1960s and survived several moves, frequency changes and the changing media landscape – but it’s beloved hyper-local programming, including a morning drive show, political broadcasts and nostalgic programs like its doo-wop show, kept many Rocklanders tuned in.

“We made Arbitron. I don’t think that’s ever been done for a local AM radio station,” says former morning show host Steve Possell. “That’s how many people were listening.

Arbitron, now Nielsen, tracks viewer and listenership in media.

Possell, who is blind, worked at the station for more than 50 years and retired in 2021 when he says older, tactile media he worked on could no longer be repaired and was swapped out for digital equipment.

When asked if he thinks the station’s closure is an end of an era, Possell quickly answered, “Yep. Radio itself is in trouble. It just doesn’t have the flair that it once had.”

News 12 reached out to WRCR’s longtime owner Alexander Medakovich for comment and a representative for Red Apple Media but did not receive a response.

Legal documents obtained by News 12 show Red Apple Media is purchasing the station for $600,000.

WABC is now broadcasting on AM 1700’s airwaves and is no longer broadcasting the station’s regular local programming.

The change has prompted a slew of reaction on social media, including a post from state Sen. Bill Weber about being “disappointed” after his own show was canceled.

As for Possell, he hopes the new owners will eventually bring back the content so many folks skipped modern media for when they tuned in.

“Keep it local,” he says, “because that’s what made WRCR.”