SOUTH HAVEN (WKZO-AM) — The lighthouse at South Haven is no longer the navigation aid it once was with GPS and electronics now providing that function, but it still stands as a historic landmark that attracts tourists, is used in a lot of local advertising, and even appears in the City Logo.
Now a fundraising campaign to restore the structure has met its $300,000 goal.
They actually raised a little more than they were asking for and the goal was also met before deadline.
Organizers say it holds an important place in the hearts of residents who say it just wouldn’t be the same place without the 106-year-old beacon sitting at the end of the pier. The reality is that it’s vulnerable because its a steel structure that juts out into the lake and is pounded by water every time there is a breeze.
Iron rusts and so do lighthouses. When the city took over the structure three years ago, because the U.S. government was ready to scrap it, it was in pretty rough shape, with parts of it ready to collapse.
The city didn’t have the money in their budgey, so the community’s historic association took on the task of raising the money privately to have the work done.
In fact, work has already begun on the interior. The workers will take a break during the worst of the cold weather and begin exterior work next spring.
– John McNeill
