Tiny's long history of beach access
Throughout the 20th Century, increasing numbers of people came to enjoy the clear waters of Nottawasaga Bay and the sandy beaches of Tiny Township. In the 1920s, as car ownership grew, many drove to those sandy beaches and
parked nearby. In places such as Balm Beach and Ossossane, cars were even driven along the beach and parked by the water, as was then the custom at Wasaga Beach.

Through the 1950s, the number of cars parking at most concession ends in Tiny was not large enough to create many beach access problems. Nevertheless, the question of who owns the beaches was raised in response to concerns of cottagers and visitors alike.

Private ownership of beaches covered up in the 1950s
After an intensive study by the Inspector of Surveys, the Assistant Deputy Minister of Lands and Forests, J. S. Yoerger, wrote a revealing memo dated July 10, 1959 to the Minister of Lands and Forests (now the Ministry of
Natural Resources) re Tiny Township beach land stating: "The Tiny Township situation in our opinion is that most of the land grants run to the water's edge and that the Crown has no real interest in these lands. However, to admit this position would throw the whole issue into prominence along Lake Huron."

Unfortunately, the Government of Ontario chose to hush up this finding, with MNR continually maintaining that beaches in Tiny were Crown Land and, therefore, public. The Ministry eventually tried to prove its claim of Tiny beach ownership in court, but lost its case in 1994.

Policy muddles resulted from an MNR in denial
Official planning in Tiny took MNR's word that beaches in Tiny were provincially owned and open to the public. The first planning and zoning bylaws designated most of the shore 'Open Space', implying beaches were in the same category as public parks. Small wonder if the general public was confused! Meanwhile, the pressure on private cottagers grew, all of whom had bought their properties in good faith, assuming that they could have quiet enjoyment of them.

Successive Tiny Township Councils received little direction for setting policy on waterfront subdivisions. As subdivisions were approved, those Councils made no concerted effort to obtain waterfront dedication to the Township for public use. The result was a hodge-podge of waterfront ownership/use patterns.

Public confusion and Council hostility
Also, those Tiny Councils had no consistent policy on parking for waterfront access. At some concessions, they completely banned parking, with no big objections from nearby inland residents. At others, parking was not limited at all; it was encouraged. Visitors who asked at information centres in Midland - and even at Awenda Park - where they could access a beach, were told to "try the end of the 11th, 12th or 13th concessions in Tiny".

As beach use pressure exploded by the late 1980s, this "come one, come all" policy inevitably led to intolerable problems of parking, traffic, beach crowding, and even rowdyism in the affected shoreline communities. In 1988, over 230 cars were counted on peak days at the 66-foot Township-owned road allowance at the foot of the 12th concession! Over the season, some 18,000 day-use visitors were recorded there, more than for Awenda Park, with over a mile of prime public beaches!

In late summer of 1988, Tiny Township Council secretly purchased a seven-acre tract at the 12th for a road and parking lot to create even more beach access.

This sparked a lawsuit by cottagers that was resolved when the Township agreed that the seven-acre tract would not be used for a road or a parking lot.

Council adopts a planning solution in the 1990s
In the 1990s, Tiny Council finally realised that a lasting solution to beach access could only come through effective planning. It was no longer possible to ignore legitimate ownership and assume that all beaches were public. Parking could no longer be placed willy-nilly along the shore.

The current Council is in the final stages of revising the Township's Official Plan in an open process of planning that enjoyed an amazing degree of public participation. On July 8, 2000, 10 a.m. in the Wyebridge Community Centre, there will be a final Public Meeting about the OP.

Public beach access is enshrined in the Plan
Public use of beaches owned by the Township is an inherent part of the new OP. It provides for major public beach parks and minor public beach access at smaller stretches of Township-owned beach, such as concession road endings.

The current parking restrictions near the crowded concessions on the Tiny shoreline have been introduced under a Shoreline Parking Management Strategy that is now incorporated into the OP. Because of its perceived urgency, it was implemented during the process, but has drawn criticism from some vocal opponents as being too restrictive.

Parking management not so simple
The principle of Parking Management is simple: define how many square feet of beach each beach user needs, determine how much public beach area is available in each location, and allow enough parking to accommodate the resulting number of beach users.

Unfortunately, the most basic factor in the above equation: "how much beach does the Township own", is still unclear in many cases. The surveyor/consultant retained by Tiny to determine the boundaries of Township beach lands discovered that most of Tiny's land purchases and land dedications from subdividers over the past 100 or more years were improperly
recorded!

Bylaws were not passed to accept the lands and dedicate them to public use. Believe it or not, even the deeds were not registered in the Registry Office, as is legally required! This incredible situation is presently being urgently addressed.

The 'radicals' and the mediator
It is unfortunate that some persons seem unable to wait for results from the title clean-up and the planning process, preferring to indulge in radical and provocative measures. Cottagers also are frustrated about the claims for beach access, but we do not expect an instant solution to a 100-year old problem. The access issue must be resolved on the basis of knowing what access is sought: to publicly owned lands or to private property?

We see the recent appointment of a Provincial Mediator to 'mediate' beach access as premature, given that Tiny is not yet certain where its beach plots are located. Whatever shoreline Tiny owns, is open to the public; no mediation is needed.

Furthermore, the normal concept of 'mediation' involves two parties to a dispute willingly accepting the services of the mediator. This is not the case here. Nobody even asked the cottagers if we wanted a 'mediator'! If a stretch of shoreline is private, what is there to 'mediate'?

What are the facts?
- The courts have exploded the long-held fiction that all Tiny beaches were provincial public beaches. The only publicly owned stretches of beach are those to which either the Township of Tiny or the Province of Ontario (e.g., Awenda Provincial Park) has acquired ownership.

- For over 100 years the Township has had such a lax process for recording its lands, it will take some time to clear up its legal title to public lands, and to determine the exact extent and location of these lands, including beach plots.

- The Township has now put in place a study to clear up its land ownership position and an OP policy to govern public access to the public beaches. The first implementation of Parking Management has angered some, but it has been and is subject to participatory revision as matters are cleared up.

- The Township's new OP has strong support among the electorate of Tiny. It has been submitted to Tiny's neighbouring municipalities, the County and numerous provincial ministries for input.

What access changes could result from the Township's ownership study?
For waterfront owners: in many cases your ownership position is clear, but in some it is not. If the latter, you should obtain specialized legal advice, in case there are surprises in store.

For backlot owners: nothing will change the access you already enjoy. Ignore fear-mongering. Follow similar advice as above where beach ownership is still unclear.

For inland residents and visitors wishing day-use access to a beach: bear with the process as it unfolds. There may be instances where the parking capacity at your favourite beach is reduced. You may have to seek out another location on peak days, perhaps in a larger park a bit farther away.

For everybody: if you love Tiny Township and want to see it thrive as a happy and enjoyable place to live in, to live near, or to visit, cooperate with the planning processes now going on. Your participation was and is now being actively sought. So, participate positively!

In the long run, cooperation works better than confrontation!