Yahoo News Hopes St Mary's Lighthouse reopening delay will allow for 'impressive upgrade'
While some councillors have expressed their disappointment over the delay to the reopening of St Mary's Lighthouse, they remain hopeful of a "thorough job" and "impressive" upgrade to the coastal icon.
North Tyneside Council announced today that St Mary's Lighthouse, which is currently undergoing a roughly £900,000 face-lift, will remain closed to the public until mid-October, around a month longer than anticipated. According to the local authority, the delay will allow for "essential reglazing" works on the lighthouse's lantern.
Several panes of curved glass need to be replaced and require specialist manufacturing.
In a statement issued earlier today, North Tyneside Council stated: "The replacement of the glazing will ensure that the lighthouse is not only preserved for future generations but provides a safe and welcoming environment for all visitors."
Judith Wallace, independent councillor for St Mary's ward, said: "Whilst it is disappointing that the re-opening has been delayed by a month, I understand reglazing works is necessary around the lantern.
"Because the glass is curved, it is the work of a specialist. They should do it all in one go whilst the scaffolding is there rather than taking it down and back up again. "
Conservative councillor for St Mary's Iain McAlpine said: "It is disappointing the works won't be completed to the original schedule, but the restoration of the lighthouse is a unique and complicated process, so unforeseen challenges can happen. I am sure the team have planned the remainder of the work carefully, and I hope they're successful in getting the site ready for re-opening in October.
"The reglazing of the lantern will be a fantastic finishing touch to what is set to be a huge improvement to our coastline and an impressive upgrade for visitors to the site. I know lots of people are looking forward to the re-opening, so I hope this additional time allows for a thorough job that will last for many years."
Labour councillor for St Mary's, Andy Holdsworth, stated: "We are eagerly awaiting the re-opening of our beloved lighthouse once the curved lantern glass has been specially crafted and replaced. I'm impressed by the level of detail that is going into this endeavour and the sensitivity that has been apparent to the needs of local wildlife."
St Mary's has been closed to the public since July this year, to allow for repair and rejuvenation works.
The new timetable for closures is as follows:
Causeway
OPEN – now until beginning of October
CLOSED – beginning of October until mid-October (to remove the scaffolding)
OPEN – mid-October
Island
CLOSED – now until mid-October
OPEN – mid-October
