KUVE-DT

KUVE-DT is a full-service television station in Green Valley, Arizona, broadcasting to the Tucson metropolitan area in digital on UHF channel 46 as an affiliate of Univision. Founded October 31, 1988, the station is owned by Univision Communications, and has its main transmitter atop Mount Bigelow in the Santa Catalina Mountains, northeast of Tucson. The station also operates a digital repeater in Tucson, KUVE-CD channel 42 (virtual channel 34), broadcasting from the Tucson Mountains to the west of downtown and serving the northwest parts of the metropolitan area shielded from the primary station by Mount Lemmon. It broadcasts in both 480i (SD) and in 1080i (HD) on 46-1.

History

On October 31, 1988, the FCC granted a permit to Sungilt Corporation to construct a full-service television station on UHF channel 46 to serve Green Valley and surrounding area. The station at first was identified by its application ID, 830311KN, and did not receive call letters until nearly two years later, in September 1990, when it took the call letters KXGR. After twelve years, five expired construction permits and two transmitter location changes, the station applied for its license on December 21, 2000 and signed on as a Pax TV affiliate on January 5, 2001, pursuant to Program Test Authority. However, at the completion of the first day of program testing, the station's transmitter failed, and it was unable to return to the airwaves until June 1, and then, only at low power for a minimum of two hours a day. After ten days, the station was again forced to go dark, and after being threatened with license cancellation, KXGR advised the FCC on November 28, 2001 that they had resumed program testing. The station was finally licensed on June 2, 2003.