
The federal government formally declared the Gay Head Light surplus property Thursday, clearing the way for the town of Aquinnah to take ownership of the lighthouse which is now critically endangered due to erosion.
The General Services Administration posted the notice Thursday, making the lighthouse surplus property. Aquinnah voters have already agreed that the town will apply to take ownership.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation announced in a ceremony at the Gay Head Cliffs Wednesday morning that it had named the Gay Head Light to its 2013 list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places.
Members of a town committee charged with organizing the move of the Gay Head Light learned this week that they are not alone in their plight during a presentation about a project to move the Sankaty Head Light on Nantucket six years ago.
As erosion inches the Gay Head Lighthouse closer to the edge, the Martha’s Vineyard Museum is moving ahead with a study to assess the urgency of relocating the 156-year-old structure.
The study will take place over the course of three years and provide a “more realistic” prediction of what the long-term needs are for the area, museum director David Nathans said yesterday.