A walk-in clinic charging a membership fee, a fight over a fountain, and 'banking while Black': Top 5 stories in Ottawa this week

A controversial new clinic, neighbours upset over a fountain, and a human rights complaint against a Canadian bank.

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CTVNewsOttawa.ca looks at the top five stories on our website this week.

New walk-in clinic in Ottawa's south end charging membership fee

A new walk-in clinic in South Keys is giving hundreds of residents a new place to seek medical help, but it is charging clients a $400 per year membership fee.

The South Keys Health Center, located at Bank Street and Hunt Club Road, is set to open next week and clinic officials say thousands of potential members are already on the waiting list.

While there will be doctors at the clinic practising family medicine, those who pay the membership fee will not have access to their services.

Under provincial health laws, it is illegal for doctors to charge a fee for services that are covered by OHIP, but nurse practitioners do not fall under this purview. Nur says with the clinic about to open, their clinic is filling a gap in the medical system due to a lack of family doctors.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the Minister of Health suggested the ministry may investigate and that it reviews all possible violations that come to its attention and ensure that all OHIP-insured patients who are charged for an insured service are reimbursed in full.

A fee based health care clinic is set to open in the capital next week. (Tyler Fleming/CTV News Ottawa)

Rockcliffe Park fountain fight a wellspring of cascading complaints

In one of the city's most exclusive neighbourhoods, the lawn of a Lakeway Drive home has been a construction site for more than three years. At the centre of the dispute is a new front-yard water fountain.

That has become a major complaint for some neighbours and an escalating dispute where, at one point, police were called.

The homeowner, who declined an interview with CTV News, recently sent out an email to hundreds of people on community association lists, asking area resident for understanding, as the pandemic played a major role in the delay.

Some people did respond to the homeowner's email with a variety of complaints, ranging from the new fence, to removed hedges, and even blocked views, to which the homeowner responded, defending the renovations.

Rideau-Rockcliffe Coun. Rawlson King says the issue is now in the hands of city inspectors to investigate, and if bylaws have been broken, it could mean the fountain's removal, as well as potential fines and penalties.

The front yard of this Rockcliffe Park home has been a construction site for years and neighbours aren't happy. At issue, a water fountain that could be encroaching on city property. (Tyler Fleming/CTV News Ottawa)

RBC client accusing bank of racism after police called to investigate transaction

An Ottawa woman plans to file a human rights complaint against the Royal Bank of Canada after a routine trip to her branch to pick-up her credit card resulted in what she calls a dehumanizing and racist experience to prove her identity to police.

Barry says the teller took the identification, briefly walked away and returned, asking if she had another piece of ID. Barry then provided her new, unused passport, which had been recently renewed.

After nearly an hour of waiting, it was then Barry says she saw the bank manager outside, handing her documents to three police officers.

Red Coalition, which advocates to eliminate the practice of racial profiling and systemic racism, will file a complaint against Royal Bank of Canada with the Human Rights Commission on behalf of Barry, and Peters says the organization will accompany her through the entire process.

RBC would not comment on the specifics of the incident, citing privacy reasons, but in a statement to CTV News Ottawa said it regrets that its client did not have a positive experience and is reviewing the matter.

Ottawa boy dies after multi-storey fall from high-rise apartment

Tragedy struck a neighbourhood east of downtown Ottawa when a three-year-old boy fell from an 18th floor apartment.

It happened Sunday afternoon. Paramedics found the child with no vital signs and rushed him to CHEO, where he was pronounced dead.

How it all happened remains under investigation, but it's believed he fell out of a window. A window screen was found on the ground near the boy, Ottawa paramedics said, and one was missing from an upper-storey window.

Ottawa Police Chief Eric Stubbs told reporters Monday that police investigators are working with the coroner to gather evidence about this incident. He added that victims' services are available to residents in the building who were affected by what he called a "terrible incident."

A small memorial sits outside a Donald Street apartment building where a 3-year-old boy fell to his death. Sept. 25, 2023. (Leah Larocque/CTV News Ottawa)

Memorial service honours fallen police officers days after RCMP officer slain in B.C.

Police officers from across the country gathered in Ottawa Sunday for a somber occasion.

The last Sunday in September is the National Police and Peace Officers' Memorial Day, where those who died in the line of duty in the past year are remembered.

Thirteen names were added to the honour roll this year, including 11 from the last year, and two historical names of officers who died in 1913 and 2002.

The memorial came just two days after the killing of an RCMP officer in B.C.

Officers marched in a parade down Wellington Street before arriving at Parliament Hill for the memorial service, during which Governor General Mary Simon and Public Safety Minister Dominic LeBlanc delivered remarks. The service ended with a procession past the memorials for the fallen officers.

Over the weekend when police officers from across Canada were in the capital, two members of the Halton Regional Police Service were assaulted early Sunday morning in the ByWard Market. An officer from the Windsor Police Service was charged with assault following an incident at an Ottawa restaurant on Saturday. 

Police members take part in the Presentation of Headdress at the Canadian Police Memorial Service on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Sunday, September 24, 2023. (Patrick Doyle/THE CANADIAN PRESS)