A Port Severn man has been given a $19,000 fine following public land violations handed down from leaving floating accommodations on provincial waterways.
Joseph Nimens was found guilty at a trial heard in Bracebridge on Feb. 25, and Apr. 8 of unlawfully placing and ordered by the court to remove the floating accommodations.
Ministry of Natural Resources conservation officers determined through an investigation that four floating accommodations had been deposited on public land in the waters of Georgian Bay near Port Severn between May 28, 2024, and February 21, 2025. Nimens owned the accommodations through a business operating under the slogan "Live on the Bay."
The court's decision was issued on May 21 and sentencing took place on Sept. 2.
The ministry says Nimens occasionally moved the floating homes, which were seen in six different locations for varying periods ranging from 20 to 99 days, including when they froze in place over the winter.
Floating accommodations, such as rafts and barges that contain buildings or structures equipped for overnight accommodation and aren't primarily designed for navigation cannot be placed or used on public lands covered by water under the province's Public Lands Act.
