The Winsted Citizen, a monthly newspaper covering local communities in northwest Connecticut, has been sold to a national magazine chain and will continue publishing, its new owner announced Wednesday.

Earlier this week, in a memo to staff, Citizen co-founder Andy Thibault said that the paper's owner, a nonprofit called the Connecticut News Consortium, had voted to shut the paper down amid a lack of funding. That announcement, however, appears to have been premature.

"There were news reports earlier this week that the publication is closing. That is not true," Jedd Gould, Connecticut News Consortium board member, said in a statement. "We are very pleased that the work of the Consortium on this publication and all of those involved in creating and producing the Winsted Citizen will continue under new ownership."

Founded earlier this year by Thibault and ex-presidential candidate Ralph Nader, the Citizen published nine issues but struggled financially, leaving some employees to go without paychecks. Thibault has accused Nader of reneging on promises to provide continued funding, leaving the paper in an unsustainable financial position.

Instead of shutting down the paper, however, the Connecticut News Consortium has sold it to American Business Media LLC, a Simsbury-based company that runs seven national trade publications.

"I believe in the power and the mission of community journalism," American Business Media CEO Vincent Valvo said in a statement. "I have been cheering on the creation of the Winsted Citizen since the first of the year. I'm delighted to be able to ensure that it will have a strong future."

Valvo said the paper will not lay off employees and that Thibault will stay on as a contributing editor. The largest change, according to a news release, will be "stronger online and social media offerings, community events, and articles that dig deeply into the fabric of the region and its people."

"We believe in the power of print publications," Valvo said. "But we are wholly aware that people get their news and information from a wide swath of sources. We're going to expand and strengthen how this publication connects with residents. It's the only way for modern community journalism to thrive."