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No easy answers

Lighthouse’s crumbling bluff raises concern

By GREGORY BACON 5 min read

The bluff for the Dunkirk Lighthouse and Veteran Museum is crumbling. If nothing is done, the lighthouse could literally fall in the lake.

What solutions are there? There are some, but all seem to be quite expensive and will take a lot of work.

During the Chautauqua County Legislature meeting, lawmakers agreed to help the lighthouse apply for a $50,000 grant to see what solutions can be found.

During a recent legislature committee meeting, Dave McCoy from the county's Department of Planning and Development discussed the situation. "I think most of you are familiar with the Dunkirk Lighthouse and Veterans Museum. It's a great piece of history on Dunkirk’s waterfront. It is unfortunately on a bluff that is crumbling into the lake and someday it will be in the lake if there aren’t corrective measures taken," he said.

Legislator John Penhollow, R-Stockton, asked McCoy what are the long-term options.

McCoy replied that there's three realistic options.

"One is to move the lighthouse, which they're not thrilled about and I get that," he said.

Second would be to try to stabilize the bluff "which would be a very intensive geotechnical event. You'd be drilling and tenoning and whatnot," McCoy said.

The third option, McCoy said, would be "doing something out in the lake to attenuate the waves."

He admits all three options are quite costly and difficult to do.

McCoy said they want to get this grant to help them decide which is the best option.

LIGHTHOUSE OFFICIAL GIVES PERSPECTIVE

Dave Briska with the Dunkirk Lighthouse & Veterans Park Museum said they have been working on this issue for a few years now. "There are several spots where the ground has just been eaten away, with all of the bad storms that we've had," he said.

The lighthouse's tower is about 50 feet from the edge of the cliff. "There's concern that eventually the tower's going to be too close to the edge of the cliff and end up being destroyed," Briska said.

They have received grants in the past as part of a feasibility study which is already underway. Those grants came from the Chautauqua Region Economic Development Corporation, the Northern Chautauqua Community Foundation and the Lake Erie Management Commission.

The first part of the report will be finished this fall, possibly in September.

If they get the new $50,000 grant, Briska said the entire feasibility study should be done by early spring.

A few years ago, Briska said they worked with the Army Corps of Engineers to see what they recommended.

The Army Corps had them cut down the trees in the bluff, over concerns the trees were weakening it. The stumps remained to help strengthen the bluff.

Last spring new trees were planted on the grounds which is supposed to help as well.

Surrounding the lighthouse is a fence. "When we put the fence in several years ago, it was at least 10 feet away from the cliff. In 10 years we've already lost all of this," Briska said, pointing to how the fence is now at the cliff line.

CRUMBLING BLUFF NOT NEW

Briska started volunteering with the lighthouse in 2009. Even back then, there were concerns about the bluff eroding away.

In 2012, two concrete structures were put in place, which was supposed to help protect the dirt from the waves. About three years after the concrete walls were installed, one of them fell into the lake following a significant storm. In fact, with a careful eye, one can still see the concrete wall sitting under water. "Every once in a while it will move. A storm will lift it up and put it in a different spot," Briska said.

But concerns of the lighthouse falling into the lake goes back more than a century.

On the lighthouse grounds is a sign that marks the original tower site. It sat there from 1826 to 1875.

At that time the lighthouse was in need of repairs, so it was torn down and the new lighthouse was constructed, where it sits today.

Briska said it was moved back because even back then they recognized the bluff was crumbling and they didn't want to repair it, only to have it fall into the lake in the future.

While the Army Corps of Engineers said one possibility is to move the lighthouse, Briska notes that will be a challenge to say the least. "That's not a cheap project," he said, adding that the house by the lighthouse has a basement.

This year marks the 151st year of the current lighthouse and the 200th anniversary of the lighthouse property in Dunkirk.

But Briska knows that if the lighthouse is to be standing for another 200 years, something needs to be done now.

LIGHTHOUSE CRAFT FAIR

For local residents who would like to see the grounds themselves, this weekend is the Lighthouse's Crafts on the Lake event. Taking place Saturday and Sunday, the event features vendors, food trucks, a basket raffle, and $2 tours of the Historic Lighthouse and Veterans Museum. The craft fair is scheduled for 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. both Saturday and Sunday.

For those that can't make the craft fair, the lighthouse is open for tours May to October. In the summer, it is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. There is no fee to walk the grounds. To tour the lighthouse and the lighthouse keeper's home, cost is $12 for adults, $10 for seniors and veterans, and $5 for children ages 5-10.

The lighthouse is also available for rent. For more information visit www.dunkirklighthouse.com.

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