Courtesy of PLU's Campus Voice Publication

Major Gift Commemorates Neeb’s Contributions

KPLU announced today it has received a major donation in a fund-raising campaign to build a new home for the station on campus.

KPLU received a $1 million gift in honor of the station’s longtime general manager, Martin Neeb. The building will be named after Neeb, who retired as full-time general manager in May and will officially leave the station in December.

Neeb’s brother, Larry Neeb, a longtime KPLU supporter, made arrangements for the donation with university officials last week. The university holds the license to KPLU, but the station is independent in programming and editorial content.

Martin Neeb has served as KPLU’s general manager for more than 25 years, leading the station from an obscure student-run operation to a world-renowned jazz and news format that now boasts over 500,000 listeners per week– and thousands of members – from the Puget Sound region and around the globe.

Larry Neeb is president of Creative Communications for the Parish, a St. Louis, Mo.-based ecumenical publishing company. He is also a PLU regent.

“I’m delighted to provide resources in support of KPLU and the university,” Larry Neeb said. “The station is a great asset for the university, placing its name in the public arena 24/7. What a gift it is in building community spirit.”

The naming donation pushes the capital campaign for the station into its “public” phase after several months of quietly gaining momentum. The campaign got its first big injection of energy in May when the Gary E. Milgard Family Foundation announced a $500,000 challenge gift. Contributions from several donors helped the station to meet the challenge and secure the funds.

The new building is being designed by Bloomfield and Associates and Helix Architecture + Design to meet “silver” standards in the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program (LEED). The projected cost is $5 million; to date, $3.5 million has been raised. The remaining funds will be solicited from private donors, corporations and foundations, and KPLU listeners.

The station’s main studio, jazz collection and administrative offices are currently housed in Eastvold Hall. Eastvold was built in 1952 and is slated for complete renovation soon. After 40 years in Eastvold, KPLU’s small suite of offices is literally overflowing with records and files. The studios were designed in an era of radio now relegated to history, and are long overdue for technological upgrades.

The new broadcast center will provide state-of-the-art facilities, environmentally stable storage for classic records and improved workspace for KPLU employees. Construction is anticipated to begin in spring 2007 and be done by early 2008.

While the major gifts and new building portend an exciting future for the station, Martin Neeb’s leadership and energy will be missed.

“You don’t easily replace a star performer and manager like Marty,” said PLU President Loren Anderson. “His vision and determination have literally transformed KPLU into a valuable community asset – providing entertainment, news and information, and community service that is a true point of pride for the university.”

Neeb first came to KPLU in 1981 from Los Angeles, where he was director of broadcasting for the Franciscan Communications Center, which produced television and feature films.

Neeb has received numerous broadcasting awards over the course of his career, and has also been deeply involved in community and economic development efforts in Tacoma and Pierce County. Under his leadership in 1996, the station earned a Marconi Award for “Jazz Station of the Year.” A nationwide search for his replacement is currently underway.

KPLU is ranked as one of the most popular public radio stations in the nation, and is particularly popular with jazz and blues aficionados worldwide via its live Internet broadcast at www.kplu.org.