About OKR FM

OKR FM

OKR FM is a community radio station broadcasting to the Mitchell Shire area of Victoria, Australia. Transmitting on 98.3 FM from studios at the Kilmore Racing Complex, with a 97.1 FM repeater serving Wallan, the station is owned by the not-for-profit Mitchell Community Radio Inc. First established as OK Radio — Old Kilmore Radio — in the late 1990s and first broadcasting in 2002, OKR FM airs a mix of specialist music programming and community programs presented by local organisations, including council information, local sport, youth programs and multicultural shows.

Overview

OKR FM broadcasts on 98.3 MHz FM with 30 watts from Kilmore, one of Victoria's oldest inland towns, with a 10-watt repeater on 97.1 FM covering Wallan to the south. The station's licence area is the Mitchell Shire, the fast-growing peri-urban municipality on Melbourne's northern fringe that takes in Kilmore, Wallan, Broadford, Wandong, Heathcote Junction and surrounding districts. The name OKR stands for Old Kilmore Radio, a nod to the heritage of a town whose historic buildings include an 1863 post office, an 1864 courthouse and 1892 former police barracks.

The station broadcasts from the Kilmore Racing Complex on East Street — its studios sitting within the racecourse precinct, a distinctive home shared with one of the district's landmark sporting venues. Programming is produced by volunteers and follows the community-access model: specialist music programs spanning country, rock, jazz and hip hop, alongside community programs presented by township organisations, local council information, local sport coverage, youth programs run as part of the OKR "Young Presenters Quest", and multicultural programming such as the "Many Voices One Culture" show.

History

The radio group was established in November 1998 under the name OK Radio. In 2001 it was granted a low-power narrowcast licence of 10 watts in Kilmore, and first went to air in November 2002 on 97.1 FM. The following year the narrowcast licence was surrendered in return for a full community licence, permitting the greater depth of programming not allowed under narrowcast rules — the moment OK Radio became a true community broadcaster.

The station later adjusted its branding from OK Radio to OKR FM. On 1 December 2009 it moved from 97.1 FM to 98.3 FM, a change that allowed transmission power to increase from 10 watts to 30 watts (the station had originally applied for 100 watts). The 98.3 frequency is shared with Melbourne sub-metropolitan station 3RPP, and the station's coverage radius from central Kilmore is approximately twelve kilometres. In 2013 the 97.1 FM frequency returned to the station's service as a repeater covering Wallan and its surrounds — giving OKR FM its current two-frequency footprint across the shire.

The repeater's timing reflected the shire's transformation. Wallan has grown from a small township into one of Melbourne's major northern growth fronts, and the Mitchell Shire now balances its historic rural townships against rapid suburban expansion. For a community station, that growth is both opportunity and challenge: new residents bring new volunteers, new cultures and new stories — the multicultural programming and Young Presenters Quest are direct responses — while the station's low-power signals must stretch to serve a population far larger than the one it was planned for.

Programming

OKR FM's schedule blends music and community content. Specialist music programs cover country, rock, jazz and hip hop, alongside the broader mix of presenter-chosen music that characterises community radio. Community programs are presented by organisations from the township and surrounding areas: local council information keeping residents across Mitchell Shire decisions, local sport coverage, and youth programs developed through the OKR "Young Presenters Quest", which trains young local presenters.

Multicultural programming has become a feature of the schedule. "Many Voices One Culture" (MVOC), presented by Raneem Bee, John Selimis and Nikki Simos, airs bi-monthly on Sundays from 4 to 5 pm, exploring music, culture and connections across dialects, regions and countries — with themes such as the Dabke dance traditions shared across cultures. The station welcomes all languages to engage with the program, reflecting the Mitchell Shire's growing cultural diversity. "Real Time Real Topics" provides a talk platform covering community issues, local business and acts of kindness in the district.

The station publishes "The Grapevine", its regular newsletter, and maintains an active Facebook presence documenting station life — from studio happenings at Kilmore Trackside to community events such as the Wallan Market emergency-services showcase run with Mitchell Shire Council.

What holds the schedule together is the access philosophy: OKR FM exists so that the people of the Mitchell Shire can speak to each other. The country-music enthusiast, the council officer explaining a planning decision, the teenager presenting their first show through the Young Presenters Quest, the multicultural hosts celebrating Dabke — each gets the same microphone, the same transmitter, the same twelve-kilometre radius of neighbours listening. In a shire being reshaped by growth, that shared microphone is the station's most important asset.

Coverage and Audience

OKR FM transmits on 98.3 FM with 30 watts from Kilmore, covering approximately a twelve-kilometre radius around the town, with the 97.1 FM Wallan repeater (10 watts) extending service to the shire's southern population centre. The licence area spans the Mitchell Shire — one of Victoria's fastest-growing municipalities, where the historic townships of Kilmore and Broadford sit alongside the booming suburban growth of Wallan and Beveridge on Melbourne's fringe.

No independently published audience figures are available for OKR FM, and the station makes no listenership claims; community stations of its size are not covered by the commercial ratings system. Its audience is the Mitchell Shire community itself — the volunteers, community organisations, young presenters and multicultural groups whose programs fill the schedule, and the residents who rely on the station for council information, local sport and a local voice in a shire undergoing rapid change. In a municipality where new housing estates rise beside 1860s bluestone buildings, OKR FM's role as a connector — between old residents and new, between townships, between cultures — is arguably more important than at any point in its history.

Ownership

OKR FM is owned and operated by Mitchell Community Radio Inc., an incorporated not-for-profit association. There is no commercial owner and no network affiliation; the station is governed by its volunteer committee and membership under the community broadcasting codes of practice. Funding comes from memberships, donations, sponsorships and grants — including community-bank grant programs the station actively pursues, as documented in its news section. As an incorporated association, the station's committee and members set its direction: a community asset governed by the community it serves, from the racecourse studios in Kilmore to the repeater mast serving Wallan.

Digital Presence

OKR FM's official website is okrfm.com.au, verified as the station's live online home, carrying the on-air stream, station news, program information, "The Grapevine" newsletter downloads and community announcements. The station maintains an active Facebook presence, including a dedicated Facebook group, where presenters share program highlights — from multicultural program features to behind-the-scenes moments at the Kilmore Trackside studios. Published contact details include the Kilmore Racing Complex, East Street, Kilmore VIC 3764, phone (03) 5781 0919 and email info@okrfm.com.au, with social handles including @okr983. The station is listed on radio aggregator directories for online listening, giving the Mitchell Shire community station a streaming footprint well beyond its FM coverage.