Replica lighthouse to shine

French-Canadian backpacker Yan Talbot (centre) with John McCredie and David Leaning from High Profile Mouldings have been helping to restore the Yamba lighthouse replica.

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• Let there be light at replica

THE building that houses Radio 2TLC in Yamba is being restored to its original lighthouse appearance.

The building was built in 1989 as part of a bicentennial project that never quite made it to completion.

It was to be built as a replica of the original Yamba lighthouse that operated from the site between 1879 and 1957.

But a failed government funding attempt meant a group of local enthusiasts put their own money into erecting the unfinished building that now stands on the site.

Now, a group of people have come together to complete the replica lighthouse, hoping to finish the job before the end of the year.

They are waiting for the delivery of the light, which will adorn the building.

The light is coming from South Australia and is from a former working lighthouse.

Although the building will continue to operate as a community radio station, some in Yamba are hoping it will also become a tourist information centre, however, the building may not be big enough.

According to those behind the building’s renovations, the most important thing is to have the building looking just like the original and to ‘have two lighthouses in Yamba’.

Many individuals and businesses have been involved in the project, including local plumber Gary Brisbane, High Profile Architectural Moulding, Tony Berry, All Terrain Scaffolding, Yamba Redi-hire, Bill Collingburn, John Ibbotson, Nu-way Glass, Beamer Tree Services, Peter Dickson, the council’s Clem Rhoden and 2TLC’s Peter Finucan.