The ‘curse of Billy Penn’? Local news site is looking to sell Philly, Pittsburgh operations.

Spirited Media is seeking buyers for Billy Penn in Philadelphia and TheIncline in Pittsburgh, local news sites employing about five staffers at each location.

Spirited Media also announced on Monday that it sold the Denverite to Colorado Public Radio. Terms were not disclosed.

Chris Krewson, a co-founder and part-owner of Spirited Media, said on Thursday that the company had been looking for $1.5 million in additional funding -- required to take the operation to profitability -- for Denver, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh online sites. The company couldn’t raise the funding.

Prior investors included the Gannett Co., which faces a hostile takeover bid from the hedge fund Digital First Media.

Krewson didn’t place a value on Billy Penn, which launched in 2014, and TheIncline, which started in 2016. But he said that Spirited Media was speaking to local investors in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh and would like to close a deal in “weeks and not months.”

The Spirited Media generates most of its revenue through membership supporting local journalism and local events.

Krewson said that Spirited Media was reorganizing its business around consulting on digital operations for television and radio stations.