CKX in Brandon will stop broadcasting Friday evening after a deal to keep the station running fell through. (Wikipedia)

A deal that would keep local TV on the air in Brandon, Man., has fallen through, CBC News has learned.

Alan Cruise, general manager of station CKX, said Thursday evening that Bluepoint Investment Corporation has pulled out of a deal that would have seen the company take ownership.

The last local CKX newscast is scheduled for Friday evening, Cruise said.

After that the station will go dark.

In July, Canadian network CTV sold the station to Bluepoint for $1.

CTV said it would not renew the station's licence, because it no longer could afford to produce programming in local markets.

The station, formerly owned by CHUM and before that by Craig Media, has been in danger of closing.

Cruise said officials from Bluepoint decided after consulting with him at 4 p.m. Thursday that it was best to finally give employees some answers about their future and put an end to speculation.

Currently, 39 people work at the station.

Cruise said the station's management scrambled to notify each of them of the developments prior to their showing up for work Friday.

"Let's get the Band-Aid off," is how Cruise described the decision to break the news to employees.

"These people have had quite a roller coaster for well over the last year, and it just isn't fair .… Let's give them some clarity."

Cruise has been the station's general manager since 2000.

He called the closure a "terrible, terrible blow" to the city of Brandon and surrounding areas when it comes to informing people about issues their communities face.

"We put the face on the local politicians … on all the local stories," Cruise said.

"Take a long hard look at who your local MP or MLA or your mayor is, because you won't see that face next year — you won't see that face next week," he said.

Bluepoint was set to take ownership of CKX on Dec. 31, pending approval from the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission.

Brandon, Manitoba's second-largest city with about 60,000 people, is located about 250 kilometres west of Winnipeg.