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The old Neil Harbor Lighthouse at Neil's Harbor Nova Scotia, Canada, became a real success last summer when it was turned into an ice cream parlor.
The Neil's Harbor Fire Department obtained a two year lease on the lighthouse and volunteer firemen and some local carpenters renovated the interior of the lighthouse at a cost of $13,000. The idea was originally to display only local artifacts at the lighthouse, but they also wanted it to be a tourist attraction that would support itself. That's when the idea of ice cream came into being.
Once the ice cream parlor was up and running, it created four summer jobs for students, and on its first day of operation they served nearly 600 ice cream cones.
Fire Chief David Donovan said that it wasn't unusual this past tourist season to have up to 12 tour buses in a day stop at the wharf, so the ice cream parlor was a great idea.
When they finished their first season, they broke even, which they thought was great. They have a two year lease on the lighthouse, which can be renewed for 10 years. While the Coast Guard still maintains the light in the tower, they have no interest in the ice cream parlor, only in someone maintaining the tower.
Donavan said that the venture has been a real asset for the village. He went on to say, "Neil's Harbor is a beautiful community and we have to do what we can to try and keep the tourists here longer." We'll bet some of our readers will be there this tourist season to see the "Ice cream parlor in a lighthouse."
This story appeared in the February 1999 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.
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