KBCZ 89.3 FM: The Radio Station in Downtown Boulder Creek

At 89.3 on the dial there's a goth show, a big band show, a reggae show, and a news roundup, all of them made by people who live here. KBCZ broadcasts from a storefront studio at 13200 Highway 9, in the middle of downtown, which is a fair description of the whole thing: the radio station is right there on the street with everybody else.

How to listen

• On the radio: 89.3 FM. Coverage runs the length of the San Lorenzo Valley, plus Scotts Valley, Lompico, and parts of Santa Cruz.
• Online: the station runs its own web player, linked from kbcz.org. It works in a phone browser without an app store download, and it can be saved to a home screen.
• After the fact: past shows are archived on Mixcloud.

Two pages on the station's site are worth a bookmark. The schedule shows what's on today by day of the week, and Recently Played will tell you the name of the song you just heard and missed.

What's actually on

Around thirty-eight shows a week, hosted by about twenty-six people. The station's own account of it is that the programming is entirely original and roughly 90 percent of it goes out live from the downtown studio.

The lineup is the opposite of a format. There's Americana and Irish music, goth and heavy metal, reggae, big band, doo wop, jazz, progressive rock, world music, and a drive-time rock show. There's a local news roundup and interview programming. Weekdays are the fullest, with Wednesday carrying the most; weekends are lighter.

Its tagline is "From the Skyline to the Sea," and its own summary of itself is that it's non-political and non-religious.

How the station got here

The short version is that the town went and got itself a radio license.

In 2012 an NCE, or non-commercial educational, FM license came available covering Boulder Creek. Valley residents started meeting about it, and in June 2013 the Boulder Creek Recreation and Park District board voted to go after it. KBCZ was born at 90.1 FM.

Then came the years of doing it in whatever room was available: pre-recorded shows produced above Jenna Sue's coffee shop, then a move in May 2015 to a small room at the rec center that the station's own history calls, plainly, the closet. Streaming started that July. On July 15, 2016, the online programming went out over 90.1 FM for the first time.

In December 2016 the park district handed KBCZ the space at 13200 Highway 9 that it still occupies, and the doors opened to the public in February 2017. In January 2021 the FCC granted extended coverage and the frequency it has now, 89.3.

The station has since added a second room, Studio B, built largely by DJs and volunteers with paint rollers.

August 2020

The part of the station's history that matters most to people who were here is the week of the CZU fire.

On August 18, 2020, KBCZ DJs broke into regular programming and started reporting the evacuations as they came in. When the whole valley and Scotts Valley were emptied, the DJs kept an emergency broadcast schedule running from wherever they'd evacuated to, one from Watsonville, one from Santa Cruz, the station manager from Seaside. Someone attended the twice-daily press conferences and streamed them to the station's Facebook page.

Some of the people doing it had lost their own houses. The station puts that in its own history without making much of it.

For where that fire sits in the town's longer story, see six years after the CZU fire. For what to do when the next emergency comes, see wildfire evacuation and what the sirens are for.

Getting involved

The station is run by one part-time staffer and everybody else is a volunteer, which means the door is genuinely open.

It says it has both daytime and evening slots open and is actively looking for hosts, and it's explicit about the range: local history, cooking, travel, farming, gardening, homesteading, animals, cars, sports, theater. It's equally explicit about the limit: it isn't currently taking shows focused on politics or religion.

Hosting isn't the only way in. The volunteer form also takes people for technical and engineering work, events and festivals, social media, and fundraising.

Local businesses can underwrite, which on a non-commercial station is a different thing from advertising and is held to FCC guidelines about how a spot can be worded. Nonprofits and community groups can submit a public service announcement to be read on air.

Music Fest

The station's signature fundraiser is the KBCZ Music Fest, an afternoon of live bands at Garrahan Park. In 2026 it's Saturday, August 29, from 2 to 7:30 p.m., with beer and wine, food, vendors, and tickets at $15 in advance or $20 at the door for adults and $5 or $10 for children five to twelve. Under five is free.

We have a fuller guide: KBCZ Music Fest 2026, what to know before you go.

Frequently Asked Questions

What frequency is KBCZ?

89.3 FM. It was 90.1 until the FCC granted the new frequency and wider coverage in January 2021.

Where is the KBCZ studio?

13200 Highway 9, Suite A and B, in downtown Boulder Creek. The station's own site footer still lists Suite A only, which predates the second studio.

How do I listen online?

Through the web player linked from kbcz.org. No download, and it can be added to a phone's home screen.

How do I become a DJ?

Fill in the volunteer form and say what show you'd want to make. The station says it has daytime and evening slots open. It isn't taking shows focused on politics or religion.

Who runs KBCZ?

One part-time staff member plus more than thirty volunteer DJs, working under the District Manager of the Boulder Creek Recreation and Park District. The park district pursued the license and provided the space.

How do I get an announcement on the air?

Local nonprofits and community events can send a PSA through the station's form. They're aired at the station's discretion.

Can my business support the station?

Yes, through underwriting. Ask at 831-703-4420 or kbcz89.3fm@gmail.com.

Last reviewed August 6, 2026. Frequency, address, schedule, and volunteer details come from the station's own site and its public schedule feed. Note that kbcz.org serves every address as a live page, so a link that lands on a "Dead Air" screen is a wrong address, not a station that's off the air.

For more of the town's community life, see Lille Aeske Arthouse and the downtown guide. What's on this week is on our events calendar. Browse the business directory. Something out of date? Tell us.