The town of Saugeen Shores could soon become the keeper of not one, but four lighthouses in the area.
Chantry Island; McNabb Point; Saugeen River Rear Range and Saugeen River Front Range lighthouses are up for sale by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans.
Saugeen Shores council recently authorized town staff to begin negotiations with the federal government for the ownership change.
Town CAO Larry Allison says the cost will be negligible–probably $1 each–however the crunch comes in maintenance costs down the road.
Allison says they’ll be looking at the taxpayer’s obligation over the longer haul and will bring back estimated costs to council.
He says council could walk away from the whole deal but will likely be able to work something out.
As it stands right now, all lighthouses are reported in a very good state of repair with several having been retrofitted over the past five years.
Meanwhile, Saugeen Shores councillor Marcel Legault says he sees a real benefit in having all four lighthouses belonging to the community.
Legault says he’s sure there will be some way to create revenue from the lighthouses that could help keep maintainence costs down.
