Background
Photo: Kyle Chapman
The Point Mitis Lighthouse, a federally-owned and operated lighthouse located in the Municipality of Métis-sur-Mer, was declared surplus by Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) and thus became eligible for acquisition by interested parties wishing to protect its heritage value according to the 2010 Heritage Lighthouse Protection Act . In accordance with the Act, Heritage Lower Saint Lawrence (HLSL, a cultural not-for-profit organization) formally petitioned for heritage designation of this lighthouse in 2010, and the municipality, in collaboration with a local citizen group (the Association des Résidents de la Pointe du Phare de Métis-sur-Mer, ARPP), subsequently submitted a business plan in 2011 for the operation of the lighthouse. This plan, accepted by DFO in 2012, calls for ownership to be transferred to the municipality and the site operated in accordance with its recent historical role as a research station along with controlled public access for recreational and educational purposes. As stipulated by the Act, heritage status, and the protection it affords, can now be granted to this symbolic part of the greater Métis community after a final review by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (Parks Canada).