P.E.I. lighthouses on shaky ground due to rising costs and aging volunteers, supporters say

These are busy times for the non-profit groups that operate lighthouses across Prince Edward Island.

The summer tourism season is when they need to generate the money necessary to keep the iconic structures open to the public. 

That's the commitment they made when they took over the buildings from the federal government in years past. But for many of the community groups, it has become a time-consuming and expensive endeavour.

In southeastern P.E.I., the local Women's Institute chapter initially took over the Point Prim Lighthouse when it was divested as a federal asset in 2015. The board of the Point Prim Lighthouse Society, made up of volunteers from the local community, now operates the site.

Built in 1845, Point Prim is one of the oldest lighthouses in Canada, and according to Parks Canada, one of only two in Canada to combine a round form with brick construction.

"We were lucky enough to have a really good group of people in the area that was very interested in taking it over and looking after it," said Kathy Murchison Krolikowski, a local artisan as well as a granddaughter of one of the historic lighthouse's keepers.

"We felt fortunate that way because a lot of places... if you don't have a community group to take over it, it just gets sold privately, I guess. And we didn't want to see it." 

Murchison Krolikowski said the Coast Guard takes care of the still-operating light in the structure, but the community group handles everything else.

She said the profits from the gift shop generate "quite a bit of money." It features only Island artists as vendors, which supports the artistic community on P.E.I.

Murchison Krolikowski said it costs at least $50,000 annually to operate the site and sometimes more, depending on the repairs needed each year.

For example, the lighthouse floors had to be strengthened "because it was really only made for one person to use it," she said. "Now we have buses with all kinds of people and we worry a little bit about the longevity of the lighthouse if we have that many people going in and out."

Admission was by donation at first, but they now charge $6 per person to go into the lighthouse.

"We want to make things affordable for people, but we are also considering raising the price of admission just so that not as many people are going in it, because we have to think of that long term," Murchison Krolikowski said. 

About 50,0000 people now visit the lighthouse annually, up from 6,000 visitors in 2014, before the non-profit took over.