During a Feb. 4 meeting, the five-member Town Planning Commission unanimously recommended Town Council approve renovations to the iconic Lighthouse Inn building on First Street.

The advisory panel endorsed plans by applicant Mike Girdner to install a ramp and walkway on the property’s north parking lot, construct a deck in the northeast corner, replace stairs to the second floor along the south of the building, create a new octagonal deck, and relocate the structure’s signature faux lighthouse so that it conforms to the Town’s maximum building height limit.

Town Planner Michael Davolio noted prior to the commission vote that no color change to the building was requested.

Girdner said revamping what was formerly the popular Lighthouse Inn restaurant, now home to Jennings Yarn & Needlecrafts and La Conner Electric Co., will allow additional commercial tenants to occupy the building, which hasn’t been fully utilized for more than a decade.

Rechristened “The Galleria,” the old Lighthouse Inn building has been a fixture on the La Conner waterfront since the mid-1960s when it was barged here from Bellingham by Dunlap Towing. It had formerly served as the Bellingham Yacht Club clubhouse.

Note: John Leaver serves on the La Conner Planning Commission and also serves on the interim fundraising board for La Conner Community News. The board is not empowered to influence or oversee any reporting on the newspaper, but we understand that this presents the appearance of a conflict of interest. The board will address this at their next regular meeting and report back to the community.