The Merville Community Association is looking to adopt a building onto its community hall site.
Comox Valley naturalist, ornithologist, artist and photographer Hamilton Mack Laing donated his seaside property known as Shakesides to the Town of Comox in 1973, as long as it was kept in a natural state and turned into a natural museum.
The museum never came to be and the building was rented to various tenants for the next 32 years, with no one having occupied the site since 2014.
Town Council proposed to demolish Shakesides instead of converting it to the museum it was supposed to be.
However, a GoFundMe has been started by the Merville Community Association to renovate the building and relocate it via barge to their community site to turn it into a museum.
The GoFundMe site said it would add to the growing collection of historic buildings to the site to help tell the history of the Valley.
“Shakesides would be an incredible added asset to this valuable and well-run community site and would respect the legacy of Mack Laing who envisioned his home being partially used as a museum, for environmental education and research.”
The goal is to raise $50,000 to help make the possibility a reality and it currently sits at one per cent of its goal.
To donate to the GoFundMe, click here.
