Shore road allowances: Severn, Ramara, Oro-Medonte, Gravenhurst

A shore road allowance is a strip of public land, generally 66 feet (about 20 metres) wide, that the original Crown surveyors set aside along the edge of many Ontario lakes and rivers. If one runs along the front of a waterfront property, the land between your lot line and the water usually belongs to the municipality, not to you. That means the dock, the deck, the sauna or even a corner of the cottage may be sitting on township land. You fix it by applying to the township to close the allowance and sell it to you, a process that typically takes months and costs real money.

Around Orillia this comes up constantly on older waterfront: the Severn River, Sparrow Lake, Lake Couchiching, Lake St. John, Lake Simcoe and the Gravenhurst lakes. Here is how to spot one, why it matters and what each municipality actually publishes about buying it.

What is a shore road allowance, exactly?

When the townships were first surveyed, Crown surveyors laid out allowances for future roads, both inland between concessions and along shorelines. The Province of Ontario describes road allowances as "allowances originally laid out for roads by a Crown surveyor," including those on an original township survey and those shown along the water on a plan of subdivision, and says they are "generally 66 feet in width." That 66 feet is one surveyor's chain, which is why you will hear old-timers call it "the chain."

Most of these shoreline roads were never built. The land just sat there, and over a century cottages, boathouses, steps and docks crept onto it. Legally, though, an original road allowance is treated as a highway under the Municipal Act, 2001, and the municipality that has jurisdiction owns it. The Ministry of Natural Resources says it has "no direct role or responsibility" in administering or selling municipal road allowances.

Shore road allowance versus Crown shoreline reserve

These two get confused, and they are handled by different governments.

• Shore road allowance: municipal land, usually 66 feet wide, sold (if at all) by the township or town through a closing by-law.
• Crown shoreline reserve: a strip of ungranted Crown land between the water and a private lot. The Province's policy (PL 4.11.03) caps its depth at 30 metres (100 feet). It is sold by the Ministry of Natural Resources, which will generally sell to the adjacent upland owner unless there are site-specific reasons to keep it, such as public access to water or an unresolved First Nation land claim. The buyer pays the ministry's administrative fee or market value, plus survey and registration costs.

Some lots have neither. On some lakes the original patent ran right to the water. On the Trent-Severn Waterway, Parks Canada owns the river bed, which is a separate layer again (see our Parks Canada permits guide).

How do you tell if a property has a shore road allowance?

You cannot tell by looking. Lawns, docks and fences run right over these allowances. Use paper.

Why does it matter to a buyer?

Three practical reasons.

You may not own your shoreline. If the allowance is still open, you own a lot that stops short of the water. Technically the public can walk the strip. In practice neighbours rarely do, but you do not control it.

Your structures may be on public land. A dock, deck or boathouse on a municipal road allowance is sitting on land you do not own. That can complicate building permits, rebuilding after damage, title insurance and resale. Gravenhurst's procedure, for example, asks applicants to show existing and proposed structures on the allowance, with setbacks.

It affects value and timing. A property where the allowance has already been closed and merged with the lot is a cleaner purchase than one where you inherit the job. The cost and the months it takes belong in your offer price, not as a surprise after closing.

How do you buy a shore road allowance?

The general process is the same across Ontario, because it runs on the Municipal Act. The Province notes that before passing a by-law to permanently close a highway, a municipality must give public notice of its intention. The usual sequence:

Neighbours on the same shoreline sometimes apply together. Gravenhurst's procedure specifically encourages owners to "band together," because one survey and one legal process can cut costs for everyone.

What does each municipality publish?

This is the part nobody else has lined up side by side. We checked each municipality's website as of November 9, 2026.

Municipality	Published policy	Fees and price published?	Key conditions	Who to contact
Gravenhurst	Original Shore Road Allowance Closing Procedures, effective January 1, 2025	Yes: $974 application fee per lot; $3,500 solicitor retainer; $91/running foot on Lake Muskoka, $67/running foot on other lakes; plus HST, survey and disbursements	Closes the part between your side lot lines extended to the high-water mark. Council will not close an allowance where a public road lies between your lot and the allowance.	Planning Department, Town of Gravenhurst
Ramara	Sale of Land Policy (2022), with an online application to purchase road allowances or shore road allowances	No price or fee schedule on the policy page; purchaser pays costs for unopened road allowance sales	Must directly abut the allowance. Only the part above the controlled or normal high-water mark is conveyed. Refused if it harms neighbours, removes someone's only vehicle access or conflicts with the Official Plan.	Township office, 705-484-5374, ramara@ramara.ca
Severn	Sale of Land Policy (referenced; not posted as a shore road allowance procedure)	Costs are set by the Fees and Services Charges By-law	Severn does not sell road allowances leading to water with direct public access. Council must approve the purchase request.	Township office, 1024 Hurlwood Lane, 705-325-2315, customercare@severn.ca
Oro-Medonte	No shore road allowance procedure published online that we could find	Not published	Contact the township before you assume a sale is possible	Clerk's Office, 705-487-2171
Orillia	No shore road allowance procedure published online that we could find	Not published	Ask before assuming a closing is available	City Clerk's office, 705-325-1311

Gravenhurst, worked out

Gravenhurst is the only one of the five that publishes a full price schedule, and its own sample shows the scale. Its procedure walks through closing 392 feet of Lake Muskoka frontage: 325 feet plus 67 feet at $91 per running foot, for a purchase price of $35,672 plus HST. On a lake other than Lake Muskoka, the same 392 feet at $67 per foot would be $26,264 plus HST. On top of that you pay the $974 application fee, legal fees and disbursements against the $3,500 retainer (the town estimates about $600 for advertising), and your own surveyor.

Two Gravenhurst details worth knowing. First, if your lot is on a registered plan of subdivision, the closed allowance does not automatically merge with the lot; council has to pass a deeming by-law. Second, if your lot is undersized but legal non-conforming, the town deems the enlarged lot to comply with minimum area and frontage under its zoning by-law.

Ramara, in plain terms

Ramara's policy covers Lake Simcoe, Lake Couchiching, Lake St. John and the township's other waterfront. You must own the abutting property, and the township conveys only the part above the high-water mark. Because Ramara's shoreline is irregular, the township may require deviations from straight extensions of your side lot lines. Township-owned water frontage that is parkland or a lake access point is a different matter: the policy says it is not sold unless the sale is "for the good of the Township as a whole."

Severn, in plain terms

Severn's site does not post a separate shore road allowance procedure. It points buyers of township land to its Sale of Land Policy and its Fees and Services Charges By-law, and says it does not sell road allowances that lead to water with direct public access. Call the township first and ask whether your stretch of shoreline would be considered.

Oro-Medonte and Orillia

Neither publishes a shore road allowance closing procedure online that we could find. For both, start with the clerk's office and ask three questions: is there an original shore road allowance in front of this lot, has any part been closed, and would the municipality consider a request?

Can you work on the shoreline while the allowance is still public?

Be careful. Building on land you do not own is a problem no matter how long the dock has been there. Separately, work below the high-water mark can need other approvals regardless of who owns the allowance. The Ministry of Natural Resources may require a work permit for structures in contact with more than 15 square metres of Crown shore lands, and on the Trent-Severn, Parks Canada is the authority. Your township will have its own zoning and building rules. See the rural checklist for the full list of shoreline approvals to check.

How Jordan can help

When a waterfront listing has an open shore road allowance, I'll help you get the survey, the parcel register and the township's answer early, before you are committed, so the cost and timeline show up in your offer price. I work across Orillia, Severn, Ramara, Oro-Medonte and Gravenhurst, and I can point you to the right office for each. Call 705-345-0797 or get in touch.