LETTER: WCTV Discusses Its Future, Opportunities With Town & Path Toward Operational Stability

Dear Editor,

Wilmington Community Television (WCTV) – a nonprofit public access station and multimedia production studio serving Wilmington, Massachusetts – would like to present a statement on potential future opportunities and path toward operational stability.

— WCTV has a long and established relationship with the Town of Wilmington and the community, producing Public, Education, and Government (PEG) media content since 1987
— WCTV is not publicly funded – No Wilmington taxpayer funding goes to the studio.
— WCTV is primarily funded through cable franchise fees
— WCTV is evaluating plans to establish a long-term commitment for its production studio and is open to any viable public or private option

WCTV was founded with the mission of providing multimedia education and community programming, and from the beginning worked in partnership with the Town to deliver civic coverage and creative opportunities for residents.

Initially, the Town provided WCTV rent-free space at the former Swain School under a formal lease agreement that explicitly required WCTV to provide coverage of Select Board, School Committee, Finance Committee, and all Annual and Special Town Meetings in lieu of rent. That contractual arrangement remained in place for more than two decades and helped establish the level of civic coverage Wilmington residents rely on today. A similar structured, in-kind partnership could once again provide meaningful benefit to both WCTV and Wilmington.

For the past 18 years, WCTV has operated out of 10 Waltham Street, paying commercial rent while continuing to deliver on its mission. WCTV provides Wilmington with free, accessible, high-quality local media and educational opportunities.  Today we continually seek out new producers from the community, including students, to create original material in our studio space.  WCTV has an inclusive and supportive environment for students interested in multimedia production and works closely with the school department to offer STEAM education at the studio and within Wilmington High School.  The large and growing youth media program enrolled over 100 students in 2025 with even more projected for 2026.  However, even with this public demand, WCTV is at a crossroads regarding its financial sustainability and is currently conducting due diligence on a viable long-term solution.

It is important to clarify recent comments made at a Select Board meeting regarding WCTV’s funding. WCTV is not and never has been taxpayer funded: Our funding comes almost entirely from cable franchise fees paid by Comcast and Verizon — funds that are legally restricted for public, educational, and government media coverage and for no other use. The Town receives these franchise fees from the cable companies and reallocates them to WCTV, acting only as a pass-through. These funds cannot legally be used for any other municipal purpose.

The cable franchise funding model for public access stations is now irrevocably broken.  With the increase in streaming service subscriptions and the decrease in cable subscribers, this current funding model is no longer sustainable.  As cable subscriptions continue to decline, franchise fee revenue drops at an estimated rate of roughly 10% annually, while the cost and complexity of producing local media has increased by more than 45%. Dozens of access stations across Massachusetts currently do not see a financial way to keep their doors open past 2026. More than 100 will be out of money in the next five years without changes to the financial model. Many stations already operate with such limited staffing that they are unable to meet the fundamental mission for which public access was created.

Over the past decade, WCTV has streamlined its operations and reduced expenses wherever possible, shrinking our staff from more than ten employees to just four today, while continuing to provide media education, exceptional municipal coverage, local sports and arts programming, and free access to programming, equipment, and production opportunities for residents. Despite these efforts, we are now at a tipping point.

We want to clarify that WCTV is evaluating all viable options for long-term sustainability.  Over the past year, there has been various discussions and speculation at Select Board meetings, in community forums, and throughout Wilmington regarding WCTV’s interest in Town-owned buildings.  Our interest in Town-owned space is sincere, but it is rooted entirely in financial reality.  WCTV could not financially relocate unless doing so meaningfully reduces our operating costs and does not require assuming rent or major capital obligations such as HVAC replacement, ADA upgrades, structural repairs, or a roof replacement. Proposals of that nature would make relocation financially impossible for WCTV.

We are particularly interested in the Town Manager’s proposed shared-use concept for Old Town Hall, which would include WCTV alongside the Recreation Department and the Arts Council. There is real synergy among these programs and strong potential for collaboration. We have also appreciated the community interest around WCTV potentially occupying other Town-owned buildings and our interest in those spaces has likewise been sincere.

There is potential long-term relief on the horizon. Legislation currently moving through the State House — including S.41 and its companion H.91, along with S.1454 — would modernize public access funding and provide meaningful long-term stability for access stations. However, even with strong legislative momentum, this relief may still be several years away before effectively supporting stations like WCTV.

In the meantime, access stations that remain financially stable are those receiving direct municipal support, either through rent-free space or supplemental funding. For WCTV, locally viable solutions such as financially feasible Town-owned space and/or supplemental support would provide the short-term stabilization needed to bridge the gap until statewide reforms take effect.

Our goal remains simple: to offer the community a helpful and creative environment while curating civic meeting content and relevant community public events including youth program productions, high school athletics and arts, podcasts, and more in the digital age.  WCTV has strong partnerships with the community and is helping to preserve a living history for the Town of Wilmington.  It is essential to partner with the Town to continue to deliver the programming and the depth and breathe of content WCTV currently provides.  As WCTV explores options for financial and operational stability, the WCTV team sincerely believes the possibility to relocate into a Town-owned space under a similar partnership when initially formed, offers a strong solution for WCTV, the Town of Wilmington, and its constituents.

We hope this letter helps clarify our position and adds useful context to an important community conversation.

Sincerely,

Sam Perkins, Executive Director

Katie Gillis, Co-President, Board of Directors

Chris Kilburn, Co-President, Board of Directors

Ken Bonanno, Board of Directors

Gerry Cronin, Board of Directors

Bob Hamel, Board of Directors

John Spencer, Board of Directors

Erin Trites, Board of Directors

Rachelle Toth, Board of Directors