Wards

Moving north past Coldwater you travel through Fesserton and along Matchedash Bay heading north on County Road 17, you pass through farmland and then mostly Crown land until you reach Severn Falls and then the site of the Big Chute Marine Railway, the only one of its kind in North America. To the west, you can take a drive to Port Severn, a community that embodies everything about the Canadian cottage lifestyle with quaint stores, restaurants, resorts, and marinas as well as the gateway to Georgian Bay with Lock 45 on the Trent Severn Waterway. You can visit Rawley Resort, Spa, and Marina for resort-style accommodations, and access Starport Marina on Kelly Road or Marina Drive in Port Severn. Further south along the eastern border with ward 5, you can take a scenic country drive, stopping to view the Laughlin Falls, a dam with a small cascade waterfall that passes under a picturesque bridge. Matchedash Community Heritage Centre is located near Quarry Drive and North River Drive and is an important piece of Severn’s history and of the former Matchedash Township.  

Coldwater is in the most north-western corner of ward 2, one of three main Settlement Areas in Severn. Coldwater was first established in 1836 and was incorporated as a village in 1908. Coldwater is known for its charming main street and is a great place to stop for a meal or to browse its unique shops. The Coldwater Mill (1833) Provincial Historic Site is in the village and is an important heritage site. You can learn more about the area’s history at Canadiana Heritage Museum which includes the Woodrow Homestead which sits on 6.5 acres of parkland just west of the village. Ward 2 is home to most of Severn’s agricultural lands and a strong farming community featuring traditional farms, and on-farm diversified use such as farm markets, farm tours, maple syrup production, and seasonal wedding venues. Coldwater offers year-round tourism activities including the Coldwater Fall Fair, held at the Coldwater Fairgrounds for more than 125 years, the Coldwater Lions Duck Race, the original Coldwater Steampunk Festival, and the October Witches Walk. 

Ward 3 includes the Settlement Areas of Marchmont and Ardtrea and shares Menoke Beach Road with neighbouring ward 4. Ward 3 also includes the location of our Administrative Office on the southern edge of the ward boundary, where it meets our border with the City of Orillia. The historic Midland Railway of Canada (1875) and the Georgian Bay and Seaboard Railway (1912) cross through  Severn at Highway 11 South and continues northwest through the Township where it crosses the Canadian Pacific Railway (1880). The historic rails include Severn’s Uhthoff Trail, a 30-kilometre trail that is open year-round. The trail extends from Wilson Point Road to the 400 overpass at Waubaushene and takes you through scenic wooded areas, over wetlands, and across many streams, forming a part of the larger Trans Canada Trail. Forest tracts owned and managed by the County of Simcoe (Silver Creek, Slessor, Corry, Taylor, Turnbull, etc.) are located throughout ward 3 and the Township. Depending on permitted use, you can access the tracts for hiking, cycling, horseback riding, motorized vehicle use, hunting, and other recreational activities. The Orillia District Agricultural Society (ODAS) manages ODAS Park and the weekly Farmer’s Market, the annual fall fair, Winterfest, and multiple events and activities throughout the year. Residents and guests can visit Hawk Ridge Golf Club for 45 holes of greens, a driving range, and dining. 

Ward 4 is mostly residential and is the area of Severn that has been experiencing the highest level of growth and development over the past few years, and includes the Settlement Area of  Westshore on the western edge of Lake Couchiching. Many residents also live in the vicinity of Lake St. George, which is located west of Highway 11 north. The area is desirable for its easy access points to Lake Couchiching for recreation, including boating, snowmobiling, fishing, etc. Along Highway 11, motorists will travel under Weber’s orange pedestrian bridge – the only privately owned bridge spanning a public highway in Ontario. The ward features clusters of highway commercial businesses serving the local public, cottage country traffic, and the greater community. Residents and visitors have access to the 18-hole Lake St. George golf course, which first opened in 1952. 

You can view the natural beauty of ward 5 by taking Carlyon Line to Cambrian Road and following the winding Sparrow Lake Road through to a lovely swing bridge overlooking the Severn River as you start to enter large swaths of Crown land and shoreline residential areas of the Township. Continuing north-east you will arrive in Washago where you can visit Centennial Park and the Washago Station (unstaffed VIA Rail Canada station). Washago’s downtown includes great local restaurants and stores which typically source local products. The downtown is close to the Green and Black Rivers, and northern Lake Couchiching with access to the Trent-Severn Waterway (TSW) and Lock 42 Couchiching, constructed between 1914-1920. Lock 43 Swift Rapids is at the far north-west corner of the ward and is the deepest single-chambered lock on the TSW. The Swift Rapids Generating Station is located on the Severn River at Lock 43 and is the oldest and largest of Orillia Power Generation stations (est. 1917). You can access the McGregor on the Water Marina, or the Lauderdale Point Marina for boat access, or spend the night at the family-friendly Bayview Wildwood Resort in Severn Bridge.