"This move is a part of the plan we announced to our shareholders in May to restore profitability and growth to Sun-Times Media Group," Cyrus Freidheim, the company's chief executive, said in a statement.

The Sun-Times hopes the merger will attract advertisers interested in zoned sections, to target specific communities.

The merger will lead some newsroom layoffs, although the numbers haven’t been disclosed. Same for the projected circulation of the new paper.

The Southtown has an average circulation slightly above 40,000 copies and the 13 Star community papers average 36,000 copies.

In August, the Sun-Times group had announced a historical partnership with its rival, Chicago Tribune, for the latter to take over its print distribution, again in an effort to cut costs.

Source: Chicago Tribune through I Want Media