Mayor responds to community push-back against jet ski business location

The jet ski rental business, Barrie Watersports in Barrie, Ont. (Barrie Watersports/Facebook)

A debate is heating up on Barrie’s waterfront, as community concerns push the City to reconsider the location of a popular jet ski rental business.

At the City Council meeting on Wednesday, Barrie Mayor Alex Nuttall directed City staff to relocate jet ski operations between the Centennial Park water fountain and the Tiffin Street Boat Launch, in response to concerns raised by the community.

Concerns from the Community

A petition is circulating online stating there’s been a significant decrease in the bird population in Barrie’s Southshore location since the arrival of the jet ski rental business, Barrie Watersports, in 2024.

Organizers of the petition say the goal is to have the business relocate and to maintain a passive waterfront from Minet’s Point to the Tiffin Boat Launch.

As of Friday, the petition has 582 signatures and is closed.

According to one of the petition organizers, Janie Harris, the main concern from the group is that motorized boats can’t coexist beside a wildlife refuge.

Harris says she has been walking the waterfront for 25 years, and herons used to frequent the area, but since Barrie Watersports arrived last year, she says she only saw one in late September for three days.

“I think what is a pity is that hundreds of people fundraised, went through all of the proper channels and got permission from various government ministries, and had 100 per cent backing from the City of Barrie. Hundreds of thousands of dollars were spent creating this sanctuary, and thousands of hours of labour were volunteered. It brought a community together and created something ‘special.’ And then, after 25 years, when everything was established, and the wildlife was there and the native plants thriving, the City gives permission to put a watersports operation right beside a sanctuary. It doesn’t make sense.”

The petition group is hoping the business will relocate to the other side of the Tiffin Boat Launch.

Earlier in May, the group said they discontinued the petition when Shaun Talbot, the owner of Barrie Watersports, stated he was open to discussing the issue. He also spoke with the mayor, wanting to come up with a solution.

Rotary Islands

Harris says Rotary Islands was created as a fish spawning ground after fish were losing space due to the increased urbanization along the shores of Lake Simcoe.

Chuck Boldt, president of the Barrie Rotary Club, said when the project first got started in the 1980s, there was an approval process, including the design of Rotary Islands and that many people were involved in the decision-making.

The Rotary Club has an environmental committee that takes on green projects similar to this one.

He said over the course of a month, more than 100 people were at work, including volunteers, establishing the habitat for birds and fish. The project was made initially to promote ecology and provide a habitat for these animals.

While the space was created to enhance the environment and create a home for many animals, there were no rules surrounding what could or couldn’t be near it.

Harris says this area is shallow, sheltered and quiet, making it conducive to wildlife.

However, she says the dock has attracted cormorants, which are a destructive species and fish eaters. “Pollution, noise, wave action and vibration are detrimental to both fish and wildlife,” Harris says.

How Barrie Watersports landed in that spot

Shaun Talbot, the owner of Barrie Watersports, says council unanimously approved the location in April 2025 for a pilot project.

He says he’s noticed people using the dock as a platform for fishing and taking photos of birds.

When the jet ski rental business first decided to set up shop along the waterfront, Talbot says he suggested this location to the City and gave his reasons why that spot might be a good one. He says it was ultimately the City that had the final say on where the business should be located.

Talbot says Council made it clear that the business needed to be a certain distance from Rotary Islands. He recalls around 100 feet.

He says operating the business near the marina wouldn’t work, but being out in the open is also problematic.

Talbot explained to CTV News that the area was selected to prevent novice renters from interacting with the marina and the people who have their own boats.

To keep track of all the jet skis that go out into the bay, Talbot says all vessels are equipped with geofencing and geotracking, which he says were demonstrated to City officials.

He also says he ensures renters are aware of Rotary Islands and don’t go toward that area. There is also a rule where acceleration on the watercraft is not permitted until 300 feet or more from shore.

When it comes to the petition, Talbot says he hasn’t received any complaints until now, but wishes the whole ordeal had been handled in a different way with constructive dialogue.

This isn’t the first time Barrie Watersports has been targeted.

In June 2024 when a floating dock first appeared on Kempenfelt Bay, what eventually turn into the jet ski pilot project, the City told CTV News it had asked the owner to remove the structure from the waterfront.

It turned out the business had been approved by Transport Canada. Since it was located only on the water and not on land, it was not on City-owned property.

Ready to adapt?

“We’re more than happy to work with the City, wherever they deem necessary to put us,” Talbot says. “There’s no pushback from us.”

Since the mayor sent out the staff directive, Talbot says he hasn’t heard anything directly from the City as of Thursday evening.

One thing is clear – Talbot wants to provide an activity that often requires a lot of money and make it accessible to more people.

“We’re trying to supply an activity for people who don’t have the budget to buy a watercraft,” Talbot says. “And we’ve done it in regulation.”

Wherever it lands along Kempenfelt Bay, Barrie Watersports plans to launch jet ski rentals by mid- to late June.