Heritage Landmark to be restored in Mornington Peninsula

McCrae Lighthouse, one of the Mornington Peninsula’s best-known historical landmarks, is to receive $1 million for urgent conservation works under the Victorian Government’s Living Heritage Program.

With its light at a height of almost 31 metres, the lighthouse is the tallest on mainland Victoria and remains a popular tourist attraction.

Victorian Minister for Planning Richard Wynne notes “this is great news for a local landmark and important heritage site, which will now be repaired and protected for the continued enjoyment of locals and tourists.”

The lighthouse, which is included on the Victorian Heritage Register, needs urgent repairs as a result of its age and the harsh conditions of the surrounding environment. The funding will allow works to go ahead on the lighthouse’s gutters, windows, balcony and copper dome and will also include sandblasting and repainting of the riveted iron structure.

The current lighthouse structure was built in Birmingham in 1874 and transported to Australia by sea where it was erected in 1883.

There has been a lighthouse guiding mariners through the South Channel on the eastern side of Port Phillip Bay from the 1850s until finally being turned off by the Port of Melbourne Authority in 1994.

The funding boost to the Living Heritage Program is part of the Government’s $2.7 billion Building Works package.

The Government’s $60 million Living Heritage Program is the biggest investment in heritage assets in Victorian history.

Minister Wynne adds “the Living Heritage Program plays a crucial role in safeguarding our heritage assets, which play such an important role in shaping our state’s history.”

For more information on the program or to apply for a grant, visit heritage.vic.gov.au/grants/living-heritage-program

Image of McCrae Lighthouse courtesy of Seachange Buyers Advocate