By KELLY SHIERS Staff Reporter

You wouldn’t think it would be so hard to find someone willing to take up an offer of free rent.

But local entrepreneur Bill Mont says he hasn’t had much luck trying to get someone to move to and watch over his property – a 12-hectare island at the mouth of Halifax Harbour.

Mind you, island-living – especially on Devils Island – probably isn’t for everyone.

Mr. Mont says there’s no electricity, no running water, and any resident would need a boat or a helicopter to get off the largest private island in the harbour, although he may be willing to supply a boat to the person who takes up his offer.

Too, the rundown house, once the home of the lighthouse’s caretaker, needs shingles and more, he said, adding that someone handy with tools might be ideal.

"It’s not a place you can get on and off any time you want to, the water can get pretty rough at times. You may be stuck there two or three days at a time. If you’ve got to go to work every day, got to go to a job, got to go shopping, it’s not for you. It’s a different life, it’s almost like a Survivor thing," he said, referring to the popular TV series.

And then there are the ghosts.

Legend has it that the island is haunted by the spirit of a captain’s wife, searching for her husband who was lost at sea, although Mr. Mont says he’s never seen a ghost there in all the years he’s owned it.

Mr. Mont said one of his wife’s ancestors was the first person to live on the island.

He bought two-thirds of it in 1963 for about $600 in a tax sale. The remaining land was owned first by the Canadian Coast Guard, then by the province, which leased it to Mr. Mont. When he sold land in Terence Bay to the government, the deal included the province turning over its share of Devils Island to him.

Mr. Mont says he now owns the entire island, except for an area around the unmanned lighthouse, which is still owned by the coast guard.

The last time anyone lived there was at least six years ago, when a Norwegian artist made it his home, he said.

Mr. Mont said he’s still exploring the possibility of working with a heritage group or society to put houses on the island and rent it out to artists.

But he said he’s also thinking about trying to find someone to lease the island for the long term.

"There’s still a lot of people out there who have a lot of money who are looking for unusual places to build their mansions," he said. "Somebody with a lot of money who either owns a helicopter or who has access to (one) – we’re talking about megabucks – and they want to have a place different, they could put a mansion up there."

(kshiers@herald.ca)