Marisa O'Neil
The fate of a local public broadcasting channel up for sale still
hangs in the balance after the start of a court hearing to decide
who, if anyone, can rightfully buy it.
Attorneys for Daystar Television Network, a spurned bidder for
KOCE-TV, asked Judge Corey Cramin on Monday to stop Coast Community
College District from selling the station to its fundraising arm and
name Daystar the highest responsible bidder. But because it's unclear
if the district gave proper notice of the sale, the judge postponed
the rest of the hearing until next Monday.
Cramin could rule that the KOCE-TV Foundation should remain the
lawful buyer, that Daystar can purchase it or he could rule to rebid
the station, said Milford Dahl, attorney for the college district. If
that happens, the district may try to hold on to the station.
According to the state education code, community college districts
may sell property "for cash" to the "highest responsible bidder,"
language which Daystar's attorney, Richard Sherman, has argued the
district ignored when it chose to sell to the KOCE-TV Foundation.
Daystar bid $25.1 million in cash and the district's current deal
comes to $28 million with the majority financed over 30 years with no
interest.
The education code also states that districts must post notice of
the sale in three places in the district for the two weeks prior to
the sale or publish an advertisement at least once a week two weeks
before the sale.
Cramin asked attorneys for both sides if that had been done and if
they had any evidence to show it had. Notice was given when the
district initially bid out the station in 2002, Dahl said, but not
when that fell through and the process began again in 2003.
"That doesn't come as a surprise," he said of Cramin's concern. "I
knew [Sherman] wouldn't push it because it would reopen the bid
process."
Until attorneys present the actual notice to Cramin, it's unclear
if the notice was continual or if it was necessary to reissue it.
Dahl said he believes that notice was not given in 2003. His law
firm, Rutan & Tucker, was not representing the district at that time
because another client, Chapman University, was involved in the
bidding process.
"We put up notices all over the place [in 2002]," said district
trustee George Brown. "I think those things continue or you don't
need new ones."
If the station is rebid, Daystar's hopes of being declared the
highest bidder will go back to square one.
"Notice is important, but we are attacking them on other grounds,
