KIMT has more than just an &uot;eye in the sky&uot; in Albert Lea.

Tuesday, February 19, 2002

KIMT has more than just an &uot;eye in the sky&uot; in Albert Lea. As of the beginning of February, the Mason City-based television station has a permanent bureau located in the Lea Center building downtown.

&uot;It’s something we always wanted to do, but weren’t able to until we had a microwave link,&uot; said KIMT’s news director, Doug Merbach.

The microwave link they needed became available a year ago, when KIMT installed the equipment for their live eye in the sky on top of the Lea Center. A signal for a studio will be doubled up on the signal from the camera on the roof, Merbach said.

The reason for setting up the bureau in Albert Lea was that KIMT news reporters were covering more stories in southern Minnesota and Freeborn County since they added a 5 p.m. news show three years ago. In the past, the station had relied on its mobile news van with a portable microwave transmitter.

&uot;We needed to make a greater commitment to the coverage we want to do in Minnesota. We were always trying to get up there as much as possible, but it’s a 45 minute drive one way,&uot; said Merbach. He gives the station’s general manager, Steve Martinson, a lot of the credit for finally finding the resources to make the bureau a reality.

With the bureau in place it will be easier to pay more attention to city and county issues, he said.

&uot;With someone on the ground up there, we’ll get to know the movers and shakers of Freeborn County,&uot; Merbach said.

The Albert Lea bureau will be KIMT’s first permanent studio outside of Mason City. Eventually they hope to have a staff member living in the community and working out of the Albert Lea office full-time.