Safe Harbors of the Hudson launches Newburgh community radio station

Safe Harbors of the Hudson turned its Broadway campus into a radio outlet this month, launching Safe Harbors Radio from a storefront recording studio at 111 Broadway in downtown Newburgh. The station began broadcasting on 102.1 FM with a limited signal centered on the Safe Harbors campus, while also streaming online and through the Wave Farm Radio app.

The new station is built as a community platform, not a commercial signal. Safe Harbors said programming will mix talk-radio and interview-based shows created with community partners, including the Newburgh Free Library, alongside contributions from local artists, poets, DJs and other voices tied to the city’s creative scene. Early programming is expected to rely on pre-recorded shows that repeat daily, with the schedule expanding over time.

For Newburgh residents, the launch creates another place to hear neighborhood stories and local culture from inside the city rather than through outside coverage. Safe Harbors is positioning the station as a limited-range service, which means the audience is expected to be concentrated around the campus and nearby neighborhoods rather than spread across the broader Hudson Valley dial. That local focus could give artists and underserved communities a more direct platform than larger stations that rarely center Newburgh’s day-to-day concerns.

The station also extends a long-running redevelopment effort that began in 2002, when Safe Harbors purchased the former Hotel Newburgh. In 2004, the organization said it was awarded $21 million in state, county and federal funds to help create affordable, supportive housing. Since then, Safe Harbors has built a mixed-use campus around housing, arts and community space, including artist studios, a library and other program areas, all at 111 Broadway.

Radio now joins that mix as Safe Harbors broadens its public-facing work. The organization’s annual report says it is celebrating 25 years and that "new voices are stepping onto the stage," a line that fits the station’s role in opening another channel for local expression. Safe Harbors also reopened the Lobby at the Ritz performance and events space in 2025, adding to a growing set of venues and media platforms tied to the campus.

Safe Harbors already hosts the podcast This is Safe Harbors, led by executive director Lisa Silverstone, with conversations featuring founding team members, current staff, residents, partners and artists. Safe Harbors Radio pushes that same local storytelling into real-time listening, giving Newburgh another way to hear itself and a new civic outlet rooted on Broadway.