The duck has landed.

But not everybody is happy about the six-storey tall rubber duck, weighing over 13 tonnes, that arrived in the harbour Friday morning to kick off a weekend of Canada Day celebrations and the Redpath Waterfront Festival.

The duck, which is said to be the world’s largest and which cost the province $120,000 to rent from July until August, has been the subject of controversy since its participation in the festivities was announced this spring.

Many have taken issue with the expensive price tag, and the fact that it’s not related to anything Canadian.

“As the PC Critic for Tourism, Culture, and Sport, I am not against people enjoying Canada Day festivals and festivities, but what I object to is the government funding a giant rubber duck that has no connection to Ontario or Canada 150,” wrote Conservative MPP Rick Nicholls in a statement Friday.

Christine Van Geyn, director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, agreed, and said that spending so much money on a tourist attraction was useless because people would come to the harbourfront anyway.

“They don’t expect the government to spend so much money to draw people to a festival they would have come to anyway,” said Van Geyn.

Steph Braun, a passerby who came to see the duck, said she really enjoyed it.

“I like it, I think its fun and it makes people happy. I guess some people don’t like how much the government spent on it but I think they’re uptight,” Braun said.

Victoria Syme, a co-producer of the Redpath Waterfront Festival, said the organization had actually considered a giant inflatable loon, but dropped the idea after realizing that it would have cost far more money to build and then store.

“We thought we needed something on the water to make a big spectacle. It (the duck) brings tourism, it’s known globally, it’s great with kids and adults,” she said.

The Redpath Waterfront Festival rented the duck for the summer from its co-owners, Craig Samborksi and Ryan Whaley.

“The duck has given us a lot of attention for people who might not have known about the festival,” Syme said. “People can enjoy the duck, not only the duck but the other programming that we have, and maybe it will bring them back in years to come.”

Whaley said the duck was a hit in other places around the world and that the goal was to bring people together and help them enjoy Toronto’s harbour.

“It’s really about bringing smiles and about bringing people together, bringing attention to the waterfront, which is a beautiful backdrop,” said Whaley.

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Regarding the design dispute with Studio Florentijn Hofman, which alleged that the giant duck is a counterfeit of the Dutch artist’s work, Whaley said the design for the duck is open and available online.

“You can buy it on the internet,” Whaley said. “But this is the world’s largest.”

Stephanie Saagi, jogged by and took a look.

“It’s such a huge waste of taxpayer money,” Saagi said. “Why is it a duck, why not a beaver?”

The duck, which was inflated over the course of about two and a half hours in the Port Lands Friday morning, will stay in Toronto until Monday afternoon before being deflated and quacking on to Owen Sound, Sault Ste. Marie, Midland, Amherstburg, finishing in Brockville on Aug. 13.