WIMI

WIMI
Ironwood, Michigan;
Broadcast area
Frequency	99.7 MHz
Branding	99-7 The Storm
Programming
Format	Classic Rock
Affiliations	Packers Radio Network
Ownership
Owner	J & J Broadcasting
Sister stations	WJMS, WKMJ-FM, WMPL, WUPY
History
First air date	November 13, 1975
Call sign meaning	Ironwood, MIchigan,; or Wisconsin and Michigan
Technical information
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	57226
Class	C1
ERP	100,000 watts
HAAT	171 meters (561 ft)
Translator(s)	102.3 W272AY (Park Falls)
Links
Public license information	Public file; LMS;
Website	www.wimifm.com

WIMI (99.7 FM, "The Storm") is a radio station broadcasting a Classic Rock format. Licensed to Ironwood, Michigan, it first began broadcasting in 1974, with its signal covering most of the western Upper Peninsula and the extreme northern portion of Wisconsin; because of the effects of tropospheric ducting, it is also easily heard across Lake Superior in Duluth, Minnesota to the point that in 2017, it asked the FCC to move a recently launched VCY America translator on 99.7 in Duluth to move dial positions due to crossover interference (it moved to 97.7).

History

After years as a construction permit (including briefly being WJMS-FM), WIMI went on the air Thursday, November 13, 1975.^[3] Initially, the station ran Drake-Chenault's "Hitparade" format (later Contempo 300); the station used Drake programming well into the 1980s and eventually morphed into an adult hits format. In 2017, the station switched from a variety of AC formats to all classic rock. Local personalities include Bill Swift and Sam Erspamer.

In 2017, the station was fined $4,000 by the FCC for originating programming directly from its Park Falls, Wisconsin translator. The translator had aired music while the parent station aired Green Bay Packers games that the Park Falls station could not air for territorial reasons to protect WCQM, that town's affiliate.^[4]