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Lighthouse Auctions End Prematurely

Bidder May File Suit To Reopen

In an unexpected development to the two auctions of the New York Lighthouses, it appears an improper setting in the GSA’s computer system may have caused the premature end of the auction. According to one of the bidders, Michael Lynn Gabriel, he was preparing to enter a new bid when he discovered the auctions had been closed, against the rules on the site and not in accordance with the information in the Invitations For Bid. The auctions have been in a soft close state since August 15. Taking this directly from the Instructions To Bidders in the IFB for West Bank (and it’s the same in the one for Old Orchard Shoals), it reads:

12. CALL FOR FINAL BIDS (”Soft Close”): Once bidding slows down, a date will be set for the receipt of final bids. On that date, if no increased bid is received by 3:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time, then bidding will close at 3:00 p.m. and consideration will be given to selling the Property to the high bidder. If an increased bid is received on a timely basis, then bidding will be continued over until the next business day on the same terms. Eventually, no one will outbid the high bidder and bidding will close at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on that day. The Government reserves the right to increase the minimum bid increment once the soft close date has been established. There is no advantage to waiting until the last minute to bid.

The soft close was most recently extended until August 27 at 3:00 p.m. EDT. If no bids had been received on that date, the auction would close. Well, in fact, there were two bids (three if you count the one late afternoon the day before) to Old Orchard Shoals lighthouse on that date, and one to West Bank, yet the auction still shut down. See images below.

Old Orchard Shoals	West Bank

Government Claims Bids Accepted Business Hours Only

Unable to make his latest bid due to the closure, Mr. Gabriel stated to Lighthouse News, “I asked the GSA about the closing and was told that only higher bids made between 9am and 3 pm could extend the deadline which is why the sales were concluded. That did not make sense to me because the Invitation to Bid says timely bids received before 3 pm would extend the auction. Even though 4 bids were made within the 24 hours before the 3 pm August 27 deadline none counted to extend the sale because they were not made within a specific 6 hour period 9 am to 3 pm that is not even stated in the invitation for bids.”

He continued, “I believe the auction should have been continued for another day and that the termination was improper under the stated rules for the sale. No where in the Invitation of bid does it state that only bids from 9 am to 3 pm only will extend the sale and that earlier bids made between 3 pm of the date before and 9 am of the final day will not do so. A day is 24 hours not 6 hours. I have asked that the issue be reviewed by the GSAs’ legal department. If not reversed, I may file a lawsuit to reopen the sale.”

Meta Cushing, GSA contact, in reply to Lighthouse News, confirmed that one of the bidders had emailed her. “He has asked us to do a legal review of our online auction process for these two New York lights which we will do. We will respond to him in writing on Tuesday.”

“The auction closes at 3:00 PM Eastern when there are no bids during the business day. The Invitation for Bids for both West Bank and Old Orchard lights states this, as does the website. The only way the auction could have been kept open is if someone had made a bid before 3:00 PM.”

“The fact that there were no bids for either is why the auctions closed.”

Except there clearly were bids. And business day? That’s stated nowhere on the website, nor in the IFB, and is subject to wide interpretation of the hours anyway.

Judge’s Gavel Rather Than Auctioneer’s Gavel May Decide Outcome

Although the matter will be reviewed by the GSA, it appears they are clearly in the wrong trying to defend the computer errors. Maybe the Year 2000 bug hit them late, and their computer system thinks a day has only 6 hours. But just in case they reject the idea of reopening the auction where it left off, Mr. Gabriel has prepared a preliminary draft of complaint for Federal Court to have them review the terms of sale.

“Actually it all comes down to an error in the computer program because I was told that it was set to only recognize bids after 9 am to do the extension. Had it been properly set to recognize any bid after 3 p.m then the extension would have taken place automatically. Basically the GSA staff is in the position of defending a computer error which I do not think would work before a Judge and I do not think an attorney for the GSA would want to argue a losing point.”

“It actually is in the best interests of the GSA to continue the sale because they will get at least $15,000 more for each lighthouse and probably much more because there were two more bidders besides me on West Bank who were cut off from making higher bids.”

Update:

Added August 30. In another email from Meta Cushing, she responds to my questions of these business hours, and why the bids of the entire day were not acceptable.

Thank you for your interest in the program (NHLPA) and process which allows GSA to offer these lights for sale.

It is clearly shown and known by informed bidders that the trigger for the close is 3:00 PM. Yes, people bid right before 9:00 AM, the start of the business day… they want to be high bidder of course! That happened nearly every day since the soft close started and the onsite inspections earlier in August.

FYI the bids are excellent. Offshores are valued considerably less than onshore properties. They have no utilities at all and restoring them, according to the standards of the Secretary of the Interior (see IFB), and outfitting them is very expensive, esp. when they are so far from land. This is one of the reasons these two lights had no successful applications from nonprofits when we offered them in 2007 as no cost public benefit conveyances.

The Government has actually given several lights away to new stewards, organizations/towns that the National Park Service selects via a rigorous application process. This is no ordinary surplus property! The structures are considered national treasures.

If you want to learn more about the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act (NHLPA) program which allows us to offer these unique lights, first to nonprofits and public entities, and then to public sale of we find no steward, please go to www.cr.nps.gov/maritime. It is a
wonderful program.

And yet again, there is no mention of these business hours, either in the IFB or on the site. The program they use certainly accepts these bids, so why won’t the government? It’s certainly to their benefit to maintain the high number of bids (they were incremented at $15,000 as of August 26) and to gain the most amount of money possible for these lights.

About Michael Gabriel

Readers of this site will remember that Michael Lynn Gabriel is the owner of two lighthouses, Bloody Point and Fourteen Foot Bank. Both were acquired in GSA auctions. Mr. Gabriel is an attorney in Nevada, author of many legal texts and associated with Attorneys Et Al, LLC, an online continuing education site. He has also served as a Judge Pro Tem and served as a Special Master of the State Bar of California. Mr. Gabriel served on the California State Bar’s Committee On Corporate Taxation and was a founding member of the Tax Planning Section of the Kern County Bar Association. He served on the Mental Health Advisory Board of Lake County California. In addition, he was also an Independent candidate for the California State Senate in 1994.

But those of us in the Lighthouse World know him as a man that loves lighthouses, and is often the last chance for some of the poorest orphans in the World of Beacons. Coming soon will be an article on the hidden costs of buying lighthouses at auction.

For the very best in lighthouse photos and gifts visit The Lighthouse Guy.

Modern Day Lighthouse Keepers At Seguin Island

Caretaking Not a Vacation

Even though all lighthouses in the United States are automated, there are still a very few lighthouse keepers. One is Sally Snowman, at Boston Harbor Light. And two others are Lynne Macco and Tim Mount, from New York, taking care of Seguin Island Lighthouse, Maine, for the 2008 season. And though they may not have much in common with Sally in Boston, they are two dedicated keepers of the light. And island. And museum. And lens. Tim, a choir director and music conductor at Stony Brook University on Long Island, and his wife Lynne, a physician in private practice and acupuncturist in New York, were the two lucky people chosen out of 20 or 30 applications to assume the summertime caretaking duties on Seguin. This very personable couple meets and greets visitors to the island, and take them up to the tower for a closeup look at the only first order Fresnel lens in Maine. Sounds like an easy job, almost a vacation, but there’s a lot more to it. In fact, it’s not so dissimilar to time past, when the Keepers in the nineteenth century had to keep the light lit.

Arriving out at the island for Memorial Day weekend, and staying until Labor Day weekend with their two cats, the work is never ending. When we arrived on the island, Tim and his brother were busy working on the doors to the lighthouse. Weather takes its toll on the doors, and with the exceptional amount of rain this year, this was not the first time work had to be done to keep the door opening and closing smoothly. They had already planed down and varnished the exterior doors once because of the swelling wood, and this time they were installing flashing to try and prevent it from happening a third time.

Other Chores Keep Them Busy

Besides painting, cleaning, repairing things that break, such as the gray water pump and the composting toilets that don’t, and mowing the lawns and trail that leads to the lighthouse, the couple is responsible for manning the gift shop. Once a week they are taken into town by boat to do their grocery shopping, laundry, and to turn in their books to the Friends of Seguin Island Lighthouse office in Bath. Cleaning up after visitors is another duty that falls to them. And the lens needs to be cleaned.

A First Order Fresnel lens is approximately eight feet in height, with hundreds of prisms that each need cleaning individually. Fortunately, they do not have to clean the brass, as it’s recommended to leave it as is, rather than disturb the oxidation process beneath it. But the windows need cleaning, the tours need to be given, and yet with all these things to do, Lynne still manages to keep up the small garden in front of the house.

And yet another duty similar to that of the lightkeepers of old, is that they must watch out for boaters in distress and radio the Coast Guard as necessary. And they must keep a log book. Not only of visitors and events, but of tasks accomplished, their thoughts and personal observations of island life. Just like the old Keepers had to do.

Requirements For the Job

So what led the Friends of Seguin Island Lighthouse to choose these two over the others? According to Lynn, there were 20 or 30 others who had applied. She said it was partly because of their qualifications, which may have been overkill. All the Friends required was training in first aid, but as a physician, she certainly has the skills. And ticking off some of the other requirements for the job, she emphasized a sense of humor is paramount. And compatibility. Spending months with the same person constantly, whether married or not, can cause tension and arguments.

She mentioned resourcefulness as another quality, and that Tim had grown up on a farm, and both have extensive building experience, having been volunteers with Habitat For Humanity. Both have boating experience, and in fact have Coast Guard Captain licenses, although “we don’t have a boat to use out here.” Experience in public speaking is necessary, both for the tours and the presentation they will be giving to the Friends at the end of the season.

A New Career As Lighthouse Keepers?

Both Lynne and Tim are semi-retired, and have also applied to be lighthouse keepers at Maatsuyker Island Lighthouse in Tasmania. Although at this time they withdrew their application, in part because of the bad weather at Australia’s most southerly lighthouse, they are keeping their options open. According to Lighthouses of Australia, Maatsuyker Island, 10 kilometers off the southernmost coast of Tasmania, is “lashed by the unobstructed force of the Roaring Forties coming across the Southern Ocean from as far away as Africa.” Tales of previous caretakers at this decommissioned light include the chickens being blown off to sea from the force of these winds.

“The weather up here on Seguin is a lot milder,” he says. Even though Seguin’s two miles out to sea, the island isn’t subjected to high winds, except once in a while. “It did blow out one of the windows in the tower, which we had to replace.”

Perhaps they’ll be taking time off for cruising the islands in their catamaran when their stint here is up. Or they might find another posting at another lighthouse. But for sure, this will be a summer to remember for them.

Haunted Seguin

No visit to the island would be complete without asking about the Ghost of Seguin Island. Asking Lynne if she’d seen or heard anything, she said no. “But it might be because I’m not sensitive. I’ve stayed in places that other people said were haunted, that they’d felt things, but I never have. Other than the wind moaning over the island, I’ve never heard anything.”

She went on to speculate that a lot of the legends may have been started by Coast Guardsmen, who, being sailors, may be a little superstitious. And people hearing things like critters in the wall may be convinced sites are haunted. But as far as Seguin Island goes, she’s never heard anything, except the foghorn.

Tim mentioned that the foghorn doesn’t bother them. “It’s muffled somewhat by the rocks and the foghorn house.” He said one previous caretaker couple, when visiting the island again, would only come when they could hear the foghorn, they loved it so much. And yet another couple couldn’t wait to get off the island because of the foghorn.

Can You Be A Lighthouse Keeper?

The caretakers for the 2009 season are already selected, but the Friends of Seguin Island Lighthouse are already accepting applications for the 2010 season. Do you think you have what it takes? If so, you can apply at the Friends of Seguin Lighthouse website, where there is a list of requirements. But it will be extremely difficult to fill the shoes of this wonderful couple from New York.

To read the daily logs of Lynne and Tim, head over to mac.com/one2travel. And don’t forget to check out their photo gallery also at gallery.mac.com/one2travel.

All photos Copyright © 2008 Lighthouse News. All Rights Reserved.

For the very best in lighthouse photos and gifts visit The Lighthouse Guy.

NY Lighthouse Auctions - Bids Closing

Soft Close Set For Online Auctions

Old Orchard Shoals and West Bank Lighthouses are set to go off the market Monday, August 25 at 3:00 pm (EDT). If you were planning on bidding on these New York Lights, now is (almost) your last chance. A soft close means that if there are no more bids during the day, then the lighthouse will be sold to the highest bidder. If there is a last minute bid, the closing date will be extended on a daily basis to allow the previous bidders (or any last minute new ones) to up the ante for the home of their dreams. Wait…home of their dreams? Photos have recently been placed online of the recent inspection, and the deterioration of these lighthouses is absolutely heartbreaking.

These lights have been subject to some intense bidding, and with the current new closing date comes a little more information. If the bidding continues until August 26 the minimum bid increment will be raised to $15,000, up from the current $5,000. I guess that means only the “Big Dogs” will be playing after that date.

Old Orchard Shoals

Current high bid sits at $30,000. Some of the photos from GSA are below. The entire set is available at Shutterfly.

Old Orchard Shoals Lighthouse

Interior Shot of Old Orchard Shoals

Stairway at Old Orchard Shoals

Another view of the interior

It seems to be in pretty much need of work.

West Bank Lighthouse

Current bid is at $40,000. Full set of photos is also at Shutterfly.

West Bank Lighthouse

Interior Room at West Bank Lighthouse

Ceiling at West Bank lighthouse

Ladder stairs

more stairs

West Bank Lighthouse seems in the worse shape of the two, at least on the interior.

If You Miss The Deadline There Are More

Well, bidding for Borden Flats Lighthouse in Massachussetts is currently open. And Sharp’s Island Lighthouse bidding is now open. Best part of Sharp’s Island is the minimum opening bid is only $5,000. Of course, you’re bidding on the Leaning Lighthouse of Maryland. Strangely enough, the original lighthouse was also a leaner. This is the second time it’s tilted. It was also the only nuclear powered lighthouse in the world. From 1964 to 1965, it was experimentally powered by a small atomic reactor. The Invitation to Bid on Sharp’s Island Lighthouse is available from the auction site. It’s a pdf file, you will need Adobe Reader to view it, and it will open in a new window or tab in your browser.

Watch for upcoming info on the other lighthouses’ auctions by subscribing to Lighthouse News. It’s free, and you can get the news in email.

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Grand Traverse Lighthouse Tops Jeld-Wen Vote

Commanding Lead For the Michigan Lighthouse

One month left to go on the voting for your favorite lighthouse to win new windows and doors from Jeld-Wen, and Grand Traverse Lighthouse is leading the pack by far. Out of the 350,000 votes cast so far, thirty-six percent of the votes, about 130,000 have so far been given to this Michigan beauty, which is now a museum. A distant second and third are Bodie Island Lighthouse and New Canal Lighthouse with about 70,000 votes (twenty percent) each.

There is still one more month to go before voting closes on September 7. So your favorite lighthouse still has time. Although the popular vote means a lot, it won’t be the determining factor completely. Other things taken into consideration will be need, overall restoration program and some other factors including state of preservation. So remember, even if Grand Traverse has a big lead, “it ain’t over till it’s over.”

Michigan, the state with the most lighthouses in the US, has strong support for their lighthouses. Virtually every newspaper in the state has publicized the efforts to gain new windows and doors. But that doesn’t mean the other ones don’t have a chance. Be sure to vote.

The entire list of candidates are:

1. Baltimore Lighthouse, Maryland
2. Bodie Island Lighthouse, North Carolina
3. Cedar Island Lighthouse, New York
4. Grand Traverse Lighthouse, Michigan
5. Grays Harbor Lightstation, Washington
6. New Canal Lighthouse, Louisiana
7. New Dungeness Light Station, Washington
8. Pemaquid Point Lighthouse, Maine
9. Plum Island Station, Wisconsin
10. Point Arena Light Station, California
11. Rose Island Lighthouse, Rhode Island
12. Toledo Harbor Lighthouse, Ohio

More About the Lighthouse Initiative

From the Jeld-Wen site:

According to the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, more than 670 lighthouses dot the coastlines of the United States. Many are challenged by extreme weather conditions and lack sufficient funding for restoration efforts to properly protect and maintain their structures.

The JELD-WEN Reliable Lighthouse Restoration Initiative began in 2005 as a way to preserve these beloved U.S. landmarks with the latest in window and door technology, and help restore the original architecture and performance of the historic structures. The winner in 2008 will follow in the footsteps of three impressive beacons: Umpqua River Lighthouse on Oregon’s southern coastline, Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse in Maryland on Chesapeake Bay, and Wind Point Lighthouse in Wisconsin on the shore of Lake Michigan.

To learn more about the finalists and cast a vote, visit www.jeld-wen.com/lighthouse by Sept. 7. Each person may cast one vote throughout the full duration of the initiative. Photos and videos of the lighthouse finalists are also being accepted to help JELD-WEN gauge community support. Photos can be shared on the Flickr group of the JELD-WEN Reliable Lighthouse Restoration Initiative. To share videos that will be posted online, please send 1-2 minute VHS tapes, DVDs or electronic viewing files to:

Attn: Stefanie Stockton
CMD Agency
1631 NW Thurman Street
Portland, OR 97209
503-488-4400
sstockton@cmdagency.com

If you haven’t voted yet, please take a moment of your time to cast your vote for one of these beacons.

Photo credit: Grand Traverse Lighthouse by CW Bash. Some rights reserved. Chart from Jeld-Wen Windows and Doors.

For the very best in lighthouse photos and gifts visit The Lighthouse Guy.

Kincardine - The Plastic Lighthouse

A few weeks ago, the news broke that the Kincardine Municipal Council chose to slap vinyl siding on their historic lighthouse and call it a “restoration.” Their reasoning was that they had to stop the leaks. While yes, stopping leaks is a necessary part of lighthouse maintenance, the Council violated every historic property guideline in their zeal to “do the right thing.” And worse, although they’ve offered to sit down and talk with Heritage Kincardine, the talks have gone nowhere, even to the point of refusing to correct their mistake. And it’s worse than it actually seemed at first. The original and unique windows have been replaced, and the interior has been ruined.

Heritage Kincardine Fights To Reverse Desecration

Heritage Kincardine is a committee of volunteers appointed by Council (under the Ontario Heritage Act) to advise Council on heritage matters. According to Jane Rigby,

It seems that the whole problem with the lighthouse is that it needed painting and maintenance. We all know that municipalities here do not maintain anything - use and throw away, seems to be their motto. The wanton destruction of old lighthouses by our federal government because they are “no longer useful” is a case in point. History be damned!! These are the same people who go to Europe and gawk and rubber neck at the old castles, churches, etc. They do not seem to realize that those old things are there because no one tore them down!! Benign neglect? No matter - the fact is they are still there.

Although some of the newspaper clippings sent to me indicate the group is going to try for an historical designation of the lighthouse interior, that is not possible. The lighthouse interior has already been damaged beyond repair, with the original plasterwork (masonry) being replaced with drywall. At this point, all they can do is to try to get the former keeper’s house, the tower shape itself and the complete lantern into the proper designation before the council follows through with plans to “fix” the house and the rest next year.

Kincardine Lighthouse as it originally looked	Showing the unique windows

The Fight For the Light

At the council meeting when Heritage Kincardine first approached the council regarding the damage they’d done to the lighthouse, Jane Rigby gave a presentation. The text of her speech follows. What is not mentioned yet is the damage that will probably result from what they did, as so many other lighthouses have had happen. When you seal up a structure tightly, you’re looking at rot, mold and other problems down the road. Eliminating leakage can and should be done without changing the integrity of the original work.

When the lighthouse was re-roofed last year, the proper procedures were followed, and the correct type of shingles replaced the old. Yet when the work started this year, and it was noticed by a neighbor who contacted Heritage Kincardine, the work continued even after a public outcry against it. Heritage Kincardine was not contacted about it, and the contractor never even blinked when he began removing the siding in preparation for adding the vinyl covering.

To get the lighthouse approved for historical designation, the Council has to approve it. And there is now some question whether they will. From Jane:

This is why we need to keep up the pressure to have the plastic reversed. There is also a real problem of interior rot caused by the new vapour barrier and cladding. such as happened with the McNab Range Light near Southampton, Ontario. We cannot have the original elements again, but we can hire proper consultants and experts on lighthouses to make sure the restoration is correct.

What happened with McNab Range Light is similar. The structure rotted from the inside out after being covered with aluminum siding. To see pictures of the McNab Light and what happened to it, Carol Wallberg has photos at Facebook. Click the pictures for full size and to read the text.

The Text of Jane Rigby’s Presentation to Council

I am Jane Rigby, Member of Heritage Kincardine and Architectural Historian, former Chair of Doors Open Kincardine, for four years, and paid heritage consultant to other Municipalities. I am representing Heritage Kincardine (HK) for this presentation. I apologize for this document not reaching you before this presentation, but since I am speaking for HK, I had to have the content approved by HK at their meeting last night. I also live in a historic house that is being restored by my husband and me.

Heritage Kincardine wishes to apologize to Council for not being pro active in the case of our lighthouse. However, like many others in the Municipality, we were lulled by the assumed historic sanctity of the structure and elevated recognition status as the Municipal Symbol, into believing it would always be preserved, never be desecrated. We were wrong!

Why Protect our heritage??
Protecting heritage features, as an integral part of management of change, contributes in several ways to our feeling of well being and belonging.

1. Provision of where we came from and where we fit. Archaeological sites, for example, provide material evidence of human activity of prehistoric and historic societies.
2. Promoting community pride. Heritage features are reminders and evidence of people, places, events, and achievements, as well as cultural diversity. Man made heritage features which have evolved slowly over many years provide distinctive, visible characteristics of stability
3. Enhancing economic development. Protection and reuse of heritage buildings provides to local building industries and contributes to employment. Creation of prestige locations brings stability to real estate and investment opportunities.
4. Contributing to tourism and recreation. Places with historic buildings, a special atmosphere, or scenic attributes attract visitors and tourists from outside that locale. A new phenomenon, is Heritage Tourism. This is a more mature tourist who has more economic clout and wants an authentic, historic experience, such as Doors Open gives. They are not interested in plastic lighthouses!

HK is a volunteer advisory body set up by Council and enabled by the Ontario Government under the Ontario Heritage Act to advise Council on heritage matters, both built and natural, and recommend designations. The mandate is broad covering built heritage, man made natural heritage, archaeological sites and natural heritage.

Council has obligations under the act as well, among them are those of policy and decision maker. HK exists to advise Council and HK exercises the authority granted to it by Council. But Council?s role and involvement are integral to the successful implementation of a heritage conservation policy programme in the community. Council needs to be kept informed of HK activities, but at the same time, HK needs full in-put from Council (and staff) on heritage issues. The statutory power that Council exercises under the Ontario Heritage Act calls for Council to fulfill the following responsibilities (there are more, but for the purposes of this presentation):

1. Set Municipal budget to be used for heritage conservation
2. Establish heritage conservation policies, both those that stand alone and are under the Official Plan and amendments (in consultation with HK)
3. Receiving recommendations and consulting with HK and having due regard for HK?s advice on the powers under its mandate.

In other words, Council’s obligation is to request HK’s comments on ALL heritage matters, not just designated buildings, and require staff to alert both Council and HK on up coming issues pertaining to heritage.

In theory, the procedure should work. But it has broken down, and has been in disconnect, it seems, from the beginning. Both the former Town Hall and the old Post Office or Annex are designated structures owned by the Town (at that time), now the Municipality. Both have been ignored, not adequately maintained and in the case of the Town Hall, suffered much the same fate as the lighthouse
Communication has not and is not happening.

The system’s broken – let’s fix it ASAP!!

This is where the lighthouse came unstuck.
Notwithstanding the greater disconnect, the immediate problem is the lighthouse.
We agree the leakage must be stopped, but such Machiavellian destruction would not be necessary if routine maintenance and caulking with painting, etc., had been performed on an regular basis. When one owns such a historic building, it is a privilege, and is an obligation to honour that venerable structure. The lighthouse has survived so far, until now, and will outlive us all, if properly maintained.

Had HK been involved from the beginning of the problems, less drastic solutions could have been found - and that should have been initiated years ago! Unfortunately, we are not clairvoyant. Unless we are notified, as in this case, we cannot respond.
There is a stable of specialized heritage experts and consultants who may have been able to offer logical, cost effective solutions.

We also do not know exactly where the leakage has occurred, how long, or the extent, except that it has become epidemic. We also do not know what interim measures have been taken to remedy the leakage problem prior to the present.

We have lost the key architectural elements of the commensurate symbol, the most recognizable building in the Municipality of Kincardine - its logo, if you like. The original siding on the tower, cedar shingles are gone after 125+ years, and the original windows, with 4 over 4 lights, wavy glass, and three dimensional profile are gone forever. That the replacement windows do not replicate the original ones cannot be disputed. They not only fail to replicate them, they are not even the same size, or proportions. Please refer to the notes and photos of the windows provided in your information package.
There is also a question as to their function on a non-vertical surface.
There is a question of the function of the siding in sun glare and survival in the wind conditions of our Kincardine winter.

Replacement windows are inclined, parallel with the slope of the tower. The unique window reveal feature of the tower has been completely removed.

These three things, 1) the siding, 2) the window reveals, and 3) the windows should be restored. They can be replicated, but the original can never be regained and is gone forever.

How to fix it??? That Council entertain a motion to designate the Kincardine Lighthouse and instruct HK to prepare the reasons for designation immediately. This will, we hope prevent further desecration of the remaining house structure. The designation includes the house and tower, the tower’s octagonal shape, the complete lantern inside and out with balcony including the elegant oversize brackets at the top. The present new windows and cladding on the tower shall be excluded.

As soon as possible, the tower wall cladding and windows must be restored. This will involve a qualified heritage architect and engineer, perhaps involving the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario (ACO) and its expertise, to work with HK and Council to make sure the work is properly completed to pre 2008 appearance. When this happens, the designation will be expanded to cover the completed restoration work.

The Lighthouse Designation Statement

236 Harbour Street, Kincardine (Town)
Known as The Kincardine Lighthouse
Built in 1880, operational in 1881

Designation for The Kincardine Lighthouse (LH) shall be effective for named features listed below and in Appendices A, B and C as well as general coverage of all features of all exterior facades of both the house and tower with the exception of the vinyl cladding and vinyl windows with aluminum framing installed in June 2008.

Description of Property and Heritage Features/Attributes:
Its structure is typical of an integrated lighthouse combined with the keeper’s house. Although the elements of the LH are similar to others of its type, the pleasing proportions, the rhythm of the windows, the colour scheme of white with red and its location in the town scape make this LH unique.
Designated features include the entire exterior (all facades) of the house and octagonal tower with the exception of the vinyl windows, aluminum framing and vinyl cladding of the octagonal tower (installed in July 2008). All other exterior features, stone foundation, V board cladding of the house, 4 over 4 windows and storm windows, cedar shingle roof (installed in 2007), metal lantern with its gallery and 8 supporting corbel/brackets under the gallery, and other exterior elements not aforementioned shall be covered under the designation. When the tower cladding and windows with their proper dormer elements are restored, they will be covered by a designation amendment (See Appendix A) In addition, the anchor from the shipwreck Anna Maria, resting in the front yard of the LH garden, shall be included in this designation. The land footprint where the stone foundation sets into the hill shall also be designated and retained.

Statement of Cultural Heritage Value
It has become the symbol - the logo - of the former Town of Kincardine and now for the Municipality of Kincardine and is featured on the majority its promotional material. The LH is unique in its location within town limits and easily accessible to other heritage structures and downtown as well as the harbour. Its cultural heritage value is important to Kincardine as the guiding light to harbour. It also is important in the larger picture of Lake Huron maritime history. It was built at the zenith of Kincardine’s commercial harbour development.
(See Appendix B)

It has also become part of the legend of the Phantom Piper whose image has also become a symbol of Kincardine. (See Appendix C)

Appendix A - Description of Property and Attributes

236 Harbour Street, former Town of Kincardine may be the only lighthouse in the world with a street address! The pole light on the north pier of Kincardine Harbour and the LH together are actually Range Lights. When lined up as one light from the open water, they lead the vessel to safe harbour. The Lighthouse, or more correctly, Light Station was built in 1880 by the Federal Government and began functioning in 1881; it has been casting its light continuously since then out to sea guiding mariners to safe port. It was built by William Kay on a stone foundation built into the hillside that was the former Walker and Henry Distillery* which was built in the 1850s to furnish whiskey to Paddy Walker’s Tavern across the street. Kay was also the first keeper. The on-line Lighthouse Directory states the Kincardine’s beacon is ‘one of the most unusual’ in design and location.

A Light Station consists of the lighthouse and house and any other structures, such as fuel house, boathouse, fog signals, etc., that form a maritime aid structure. The lighthouse part is the tower only. In the case of Kincardine, both are built of wood with the octagonal tower sitting on top of the keeper’s house. The two elements form an octagonal integrated Light Sation. The octagonal lighthouse tower forms a complete architectural structure with the house. The two are integrated on the interior space as well. The dodecagonal iron lantern is blocked out on the east side with solid metal panels. This lantern room on top of the tower is a glassed in room that houses the lamp and lens. The glass storm panes are supported by metal astragal bars which help reinforce the glass against the blast of wind and water. A ventilator on top provides air flow to remove smoke and heat from the lamp, especially in the early days when the lamp was lit with kerosene. The roof of the lantern room is called a cupola. The open platform or balcony outside the lantern room is called a gallery. This is used mainly to clean the windows of the lantern room, but in Kincardine, it is also where the Piper stands. (See Cultural heritage below.)

Shutters rotated around the lamp by a weighted clock-works and created the lamp’s red flash pattern (flash 1s, eclipse 5s).

The exterior painting of a lighthouse is called its daymark. Lights near each other are painted in a similar unique pattern so they can easily be recognized during daylight from sea. This can be in spiral red and white or black and white, or horizontal stripes, or vertical stripes….any marking that shows well on the horizon. Kincardine’s light is traditionally painted white with red details in the lantern, gallery and brackets. At one time the corner boards (vertical dividers between the cedar shingles on the octagonal faces of the tower) under the tower brackets were painted, but all have been white since the beginning of the 20th Century, according to early photographs. The recent changes to the cladding of the tower removed the long orange vertical daymark from the west side of the tower.

The original windows were 4 panes over 4. There were three in each of four alternate sides of the tower and lit the 69 steps up to the lantern. The kerosene had be hauled up these steps as well! The original windows and cladding still exist on the house portion.

*Paddy Walker owned The Walker House Tavern across Harbour Street from the LH and James Henry was the first Postmaster appointed by the village, then known as Penetangore. In 1858, the name was changed to Village of Kincardine after the Governor General of the day, The Earl of Elgin and Kincardine.

Appendix B - Cultural Heritage Value

The history of lighthouses is long and rich. The most famous lighthouse is the Pharos of Alexandria, Egypt, built in 280BC. The word comes from the Greek for lighthouse, pharos, which is the root for lighthouse in many languages; the study of lighthouses is called Pharology. The first lighthouse in North America was the Boston Light on Little Brewster Island (1716). The first in Canada was at Fort Louisburg in 1731-1734. The first Great Lakes lighthouse was built in 1804 at the mouth of the Niagara River by the British. During the war of 1812, it was spared any damage by the Americans who realized its importance.

Expansion of settlement in the Great Lakes and the resultant trade both up and down the lakes and to the USA, and the coming of the steamship in the mid 19th Century forced harbours to expand and offer better facilities. The large number of shipwrecks near Kincardine as well as all around the Great Lakes attested to the need. In the 1850s the Crown approved the erection of a string in ‘Imperial Lighthouses’ built by John Brown about 1859. There were to be 11 but only 6 were built, Point Clark Lighthouse just south of Kincardine is one of these.

William Kay was not only the builder of the LH, but also the first keeper. Perhaps this is why the two elements were so well integrated, he knew the hard work, and weather and the hazards of tending the beacon in foul weather. Among his duties were the following:
1. Light the lamps so they became fully burning by nightfall
2. Turn down the wicks, trim them, light them and raise the wicks gradually until they reached their full flame.
3. Remain in the tower for a full 30 minutes to be sure the flames were correct and sable.
4. All chimneys should be vertical and clean.
5. In heavy weather, he must not leave the lights unattended.
6. He must also clean the reflectors and the glass enclosure.
He also tended to the other range light on the pier. In 1899 the keeper earned $600 per year.
In July 1902 the range light on the pier burned and was replaced by a 28′ (8.5m) pole light. In 1922 electricity replaced kerosene. In th 1950s the light-keeper was also the harbour master. By 1970 the light s became automated and in 1977 the keeper’s position was discontinued. In 1980 the Canadian Coast Guard leased the LH to the Kincardine Yacht Club. In about 1998, the LH became the property of the Town of Kincardine, now the Municipality of Kincardine.

The LH, however did not save the two most notable shipwrecks near the harbour. The Erie Bell sank in 1883 and the Anna Maria in 190; it is her black anchor that rests in the Lighthouse front garden.

Kincardine choose the LH for its visual symbol presumably because it is a focal point for the downtown uniting it with the harbour. Its picturesque landmark position, seen from both Lake Huron and the land makes it the most photographed structure in Kincardine. Wittingly or not, they choose a powerful symbol. Lighthouses stand for unselfish giving in that they exist for the public good - ships benefit for no charge - to find safe harbour. They are a beacon of truth, a guiding light, with all that applies to these concepts.

Appendix C - Legend

There is a third Cultural and Mythic/Apocryphal tradition associated with the LH - the Phantom Piper. There is the legend of Donald Sinclair, who with his family, was bound for Kincardine in 1856. But his boat foundered in a storm and dense fog and the captain could not find the shore. In despair, he picked up his pipes and began a lament. To his surprise, his lament was answered from the shore. The boat followed the sound and they were brought safely to Kincardine Harbour. Was this an early form of fog-horn?

In the late 1900s, the Kincardine Scottish Pipe Band** decided to honour the memory of the Phantom Piper and Donald Sinclair. Every evening during the summer months, a member of the band pipes the sun down from the gallery of the Lighthouse. It creates an melancholy yet thankful mood with the skirl of the piping floating across the harbour as the sun slips below the horizon. The lighthouse is the foundation for reminding citizen and visitors alike of the seafaring tradition it symbolizes and the safe harbour that is Kincardine.

** The Kincardine Scottish is a non-military Pipe Band that performs a parade every Saturday night in the summer months and a small concert in Victoria Park after the march. The close association of the band with the Phantom Piper and the LH add to the legend. The band is celebrating its 100 year in 2008. Its Saturday parades began after World War II.

What Others Have Said

Jane was nice enough to send along some press coverage clippings, including editorials, letters to the editor and news stories. These are all in pdf format and will open in a new window. Or you can right click them and save to your computer for later reading. If you don’t have Adobe Reade, which you need to view the files, you can get it at www.adobe.com.

• Short editorial in the Independent (May 28)
• News story from June 4
• Letters to the Editor
• Winging It - A column by Fred Kirby in the Independent
• News story about decision to leave vinyl in place
• An editorial and a news story about the discussions

What Can We Do?

We can send emails to the Municipal Council asking them to reconsider their decision to leave the vinyl siding and poorly fitted windows in place. E-mails should be addressed to the Mayor and Council, Municipality of Kincardine, and sent to clerk@kincardine.net. A well planned campaign by lighthouse lovers from around the world might do more to change their minds than anything.

A sample e-mail might read (feel free to copy and paste):

Photo Credits:

• Kincardine Lighthouse by CWBash. Some rights reserved.
• Kincardine Lighthouse by ASAP. Some rights reserved.
• Kincardine Lighthouse at dusk by Mike Wood Photography. Some rights reserved.
• All restoration photos by Jane Rigby. All rights reserved.