Mermaid sculpture finds permanent home alongside West Nipissing bay
A large mermaid sculpture, which was purchased by the Sturgeon Falls Beautification Group four years ago, has found a permanent resting place overlooking Minnehaha Bay.
Basking in the sun and perched on a rock near the bay is West Nipissing's not-so-little mermaid.
Named Marina, she's seven feet long from head to fluke and she weighs about 200 pounds.
"Our goal is to not only beautify, but to have attractions or pieces of art for people to talk about and come and see," said the beautification group's founder Gayle Primeau.
Marina was in municipal storage for the past three years as the municipality and the beautification group tried to find a permanent location.
That is until just recently, the group acquired a piece of vacant private property near the bay for her to rest.
"It's a relief because you know residents paid and for this to see Marina out," said Primeau.
"So for myself and for the group it's a relief."
Council had a few concerns about whether the sculpture should be located on municipal property.
It feared the sharp metal in the sculpture's hair and scales could injure someone climbing on it or someone taking a photo with it. The municipality didn't want to take the risk.
"It really fell around liability if someone gets hurt, the municipality ends up being liable for that," said West Nipissing Mayor Kathleen Rochon.
"We live in a society where municipalities end up as targets of lawsuits."
Rochon said council "tried its hardest" to find a solution that would benefit all parties. Council also found out installing the sculpture on public property at a height not accessible to the public would have cost $18,000.
Rochon, however, is pleased with the location where Marina can been seen but not accessed.
o Download our app to get local alerts on your device
o Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
"We're really happy that the beautification group found a good home for Marina," she said.
Now with a permanent home, Marina the mermaid will be keeping a watchful eye on the calm, soothing waters.
"I'm very happy. She welcomes everybody to come to the bay," said Primeau.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cargo ship had engine maintenance in port before Baltimore bridge collapse, officials say
The cargo ship that lost power and crashed into a bridge in Baltimore underwent 'routine engine maintenance' in port beforehand, the U.S. Coast Guard said Wednesday.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.
Families shocked after Niagara Falls hotel cancels bookings made year in advance of solar eclipse
After having the foresight to book their Niagara Falls hotel rooms more than a year in advance, several families planning to take in the solar eclipse next month were shocked to find out their reservations had been cancelled.
B.C. rescuers face 'high likelihood' of failure to reunite orphaned orca with pod
The race to reunite an orphaned orca calf that’s stuck in a shallow lagoon with a neighbouring pod has entered its fifth day, and a marine scientist says the clock is ticking.
Video shows police interrupting auto theft in progress outside Toronto home
New video footage obtained by CP24 shows the attempted theft of a vehicle in a North York driveway earlier this month that was ultimately interrupted by police.
Majority of Canadians believe in life after death: Angus Reid survey
A new survey from the Angus Reid Institute has found that a majority of Canadians believe in some form of life after death, a proportion that has held steady for decades.
MyPillow, owned by U.S. election denier Mike Lindell, formally evicted from Minnesota warehouse
A court ordered the eviction Wednesday of MyPillow from a suburban Minneapolis warehouse that it formerly used.