For hundreds of years, lighthouses have welcomed travelers to the shores of the United States. However, the advent of GPS has left many coastal guardians without a practical purpose. And maintaining many of them is difficult. For example, the Penfield Reef lighthouse in Connecticut and the Stratford Shoal lighthouse in the middle of Long Island Sound can only be reached by boat.
Therefore, the General Services Administration (GSA) will give away six historic lighthouses free of charge. Four more will be sold at public auction. The purpose of the transfer is to preserve historic buildings, even if modern technology has rendered them obsolete.
First, the GSA will offer them free of charge to local government and non-profit organizations. If the organizations do not take the beacons "into custody," they will be put up for sale at auction. To date, there are 70 beacons in the lots, ranging in price from $10,000 to more than $900,000.
To participate in the auction, interested buyers must be able to maintain the beacons and provide public access to them. Thanks to this process, more than 80 beacons have already found new owners and a stable future.
