Southampton’s historic old town hall clock tower will be staying at 12 o’clock until about June.
Repairs are being done to the 114 year old clock.
Saugeen Shores Communications Specialist Brent Lanthier says, “It’s arguably the focal point of Southampton’s downtown.”
Lanthier says as it’s gotten older it’s deteriorated and staff have had to repair the clock more frequently as well as correct the time.
He says in the past, a local jeweller had serviced the clock, but because of the increasing frequency of the servicing the decision was made to replace the mechanism.
He says the new mechanism will keep the tower clock and the bell system in sync and on time. “In other words, you’ll be able to set your watch using using the Southampton town hall clock when it’s finished,” says Lanthier.
He says, the work will cost just under $15,000, explaining, “Obviously, this is a very, very specialized system. There’s not a lot of people who do it anymore, not a lot of tower bells that get made anymore so we wanted to preserve an important heritage building and focal point for the town.”
Lanthier says the cost of the clock repair is part of the Town’s long-term asset management plan.
“A lot if this is through the work of the municipal heritage committee as well as Town staff, so they continue to advocate for the preservation of our community’s heritage through public storytelling, but also identifying buildings and structures that are worth preserving,” says Lanthier.
He adds, nominations are still open for the Saugeen Shores heritage award until the and of the month. It recognizes people who have helped conserve an older building or environmental heritage site. The nomination form can be found on the Town’s website and social media.
