Decatur, IL (CAPITOL CITY NOW) – Our news partners are being sold.

WAND-TV says the station based in Decatur, along with two others are all being bought by Gray Media as part of an $80 million deal.

The Atlanta-based company already owns TV stations in 113 other markets, including in Peoria, the Quad Cities, Quincy, and Rockford in Illinois.

WAND says the sale is expected to be finalized in the last quarter of this year, pending FCCC approval.

Current owner Block Communications will continue to own newspapers and cable operations. The three TV stations are the only stations in their company.

“Block Communications has fully owned WAND TV since 2007 but handled some of the station’s operations beginning in 2000. The company, founded in 1900, will continue to own cable and newspaper assets. Block Communications is headquartered in Toledo, Ohio,” said WAND-TV.

This is the latest sale of a television that’s in the Springfield-Champaign-Decatur television market.  The sale of WICS-TV by Sinclair Broadcast Group to Rincon Broadcasting was completed in the last month.  WCIA-TV, based in Champaign but with a Springfield office and news bureau, has been owned by Nexstar Media Group for decades.