People do a lot of weird things, but stealing shingles has to be top of the weird list.
Twenty-two years ago, the Maritime Discovery Centre updated its lighthouse with concrete shingles.
“The thinking was they would be more resilient to the effects of the weather than cedar,” said Port Alberni Maritime Heritage Society president Ken Watson to Alberni Valley News.
This might have been true if people didn’t decide to make a game of removing them.
“Folks have decided it’s ‘fun’ to rip them off.”
So much fun, in fact, that almost a third of the lighthouse has ended up completely exposed to all the rain, snow, and wind mother nature decides to throw at it.
It was time for a makeover.
Preserving the historic look of the lighthouse was very important to AMHS.
Despite the thousands of dollars that have been recently invested in replacing the membrane roof as well as now the shingles, the lighthouse won’t be looking any more modern. It’ll just be a better version of its old self.
The shingles will be replaced with metal cladding, which “shouldn’t look too different,” Watson said. Add a fresh coat of paint to the mix, and the building should look refreshed and rejuvenated.
Donations from the Port Alberni Port Authority and Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District helped make the renovations happen.
Port Alberni-based Javen Simon Roofing Ltd. performed an emergency repair on the roof last winter when it started to leak. During the summer, it was properly renovated, and the shingle replacements are up next.
“We’re hoping to get (the lighthouse) back looking like the iconic building it is,” Watson said.
Then it’s up to the rest of us to quit stealing shingles and keep it that way.
