Another step is being taken in the long journey to have the old U.S. Coast Guard property on Marquette’s Lower Harbor transferred to the city.

This action involves the Coast Guard mitigating some relatively minor environmental concerns on the property, mainly associated with lead-base paint that was used on the old structures.

Environmental assessments done in recent years found trace amounts of lead, other metals and semi-volatile organic compounds in several boring samples.

A Coast Guard official said they were not at hazardous levels, although they are above limits set by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. The Coast Guard plans to strip the buildings of their paint, dispose of it properly and repaint the structures.

Documents relating to the project can be viewed at Peter White Public Library and on the city’s website at mqtcty.org/coast-guard-station.php. The Coast Guard will be accepting public comment on the project through April 13.

In addition, over the years above ground heating oil storage tanks and fuel storage tanks were removed, along with other outbuildings.

Carrying out such environmentally related clean-up actions are required under the program that enables the Coast Guard to convey the property to the city of Marquette.

In 2009, the city and Coast Guard entered into an agreement in which the city provided nearby waterfront property for the new station that was built.

In exchange, the city will receive the approximately 5.7 acres for community recreation and historic preservation efforts. The Marquette Maritime Museum is already using the lighthouse building for public tours.

The lighthouse and its keepers – from individuals in the early years when it was first constructed in 1853 up through the Coast Guard years – have always been welcoming fixtures of Marquette.

This holds true not only for those who enter the city via Lake Superior, but also to those residents and visitors who have an interest in the wonderful maritime history of the region.

Having the property in shipshape condition and ready for public use will be another fine feather in the city’s cap.