ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½

ST. LOUIS — Standing in a seventh floor courtroom in the federal courthouse downtown, Tom DeWoskin channeled his inner Maverick.

The fighter pilot from the “Top Gun� movie played by actor Tom Cruise famously expressed his “,� and yet, his patented move in the air was to and slow down his jet so an opposing pilot would speed on by and end up in his sights.

DeWoskin, an attorney who represents a growing coalition of folks trying to save community radio station KDHX, had a simple request Wednesday for the federal bankruptcy judge overseeing a potential sale of the radio station to a Christian radio conglomerate.

“There is no need for speed, here,� DeWoskin said, repeating the phrase a few times for emphasis.

At the hearing, the attorneys for KDHX’s board were seeking to schedule an auction later this month to take bids to sell the station’s license. Two Christian radio station companies have bid to take over the license from the community radio station that has historically been the eclectic local music home for many ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ans. But the local group of former DJs, volunteers, listeners and ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ business owners want time to convince the judge, and the KDHX board, that there’s a better alternative, that is, to save the station’s original purpose.

“This whole thing is just being pushed forward at breakneck speed with literally no purpose whatsoever,� DeWoskin said. “I can’t think of anything that is more contrary to the mission of this nonprofit than selling their license.�

The controversy over the radio station, founded in 1987 at 88.1 on the FM dial, started when a few of the more high-profile volunteer DJs were fired. As it brewed, some other DJs walked out, donations dried up, and eventually, all of the leftover DJs, most of whom were associate members of the nonprofit with voting rights, were fired.

They sued. KDHX filed for bankruptcy, in a vote that the station’s supporters suggest was illegal. A Christian radio conglomerate out of Tennessee bid to buy the station. Then a second one. Now some supporters of the station believe that was the plan all along.

For the past two years, I’ve mostly ignored the story and its many twists and turns and back-and-forth allegations of skullduggery. Truth is, at first, I didn’t get it. Over the years, I had been interviewed on the station a handful of times by former show host, D.J. Wilson, who passed away in 2019. Radio stations come and go. They change formats from rock, to talk, to country, to sports. Like the newspaper business, there are many outside factors at play. I left the story to others and turned my attention elsewhere.

Jon Parker changed my mind.

The owner of , an oversized corner market that sells wine, beer and sandwiches, Parker moved to ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ from Nashville about 30 years ago. He thought he’d be here for a couple of years, but the rhythm of the city changed that.

“ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ music was fun,â€� Parker says of the city with a rich blues, jazz, rock, and live local venue history. “The station (KDHX) really transmitted the fun of the city. It gave you a great flavor for the town. I thought any city that could support a station like that was worth living in.â€�

Parker stayed in ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½. He worked. He bought a business. He used some of his profits to support KDHX. Over the past year or so, Parker and Steve Smith, owner of tavern, tried to work behind the scenes to bring the radio station’s board and the disgruntled DJs to some sort of consensus. Their efforts failed. So on Wednesday, the growing coalition of folks packed the bankruptcy courtroom to let the judge know that the radio station they love is worth saving.

“This coalition is prepared to submit a plan to preserve the station’s license, pay off its debts, and restore its founding mission,� Smith testified in court. “There are many local sources of the type of content proposed under this sale. There is only one KDHX.�

After a more than two-hour hearing, Judge Kathy Surratt-States gave DeWoskin and his community coalition at least some of what they were seeking.

“This probably needs to slow down somewhat,� she said, in not yet setting a sale date for the station’s license, “but not a snail’s pace.� There will be another hearing in May.

Parker’s hope is that in the next month, reasonable minds will find a way to sit down and talk about a possible path forward that saves some version of the radio station that kept him in ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ almost three decades ago.

“My deepest feeling about this whole thing is that KDHX has been one of ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½â€™ strongest advocates of small businesses and artists,â€� Parker says. “It’s a huge part of the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ economic ecosystem.â€�

Slow down, he says. Find a way to save this unique ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ asset before it spins out of control and is lost forever.