Developers plans billion-dollar Ottawa waterfront development
Ottawa’s Domtar region will undergo a transformation as private developers start a 15-year-long, $1-billion development that will include a hotel, parks, and condos. The main Domtar building will also be converted into a commercial and retail shopping centre, according to media reports.
The Windmill Development Group and the Dream Unlimited Corporation announced on Feb. 24 that construction on the 40-acre development will begin this spring.
The project is separated into three main districts within five minutes of each other, and is connected with extended bike lanes. Riverside areas will be largely opened up with public walkways, and the construction of buildings will allow for unobstructed views from most parts of the development.
The Domtar lands, situated between Ottawa and Gatineau, are also home to the historic Chaudière Falls.
The finished project will be named Zibi, the Algonquin word for river.
—Ilyas Khamis
Ottawa jury finds Rachelle Denis guilty
A troubled former day care operator and mother of five from the Hunt Club area of Ottawa has been charged with manslaughter for killing her former lover Tony El-Kassis with a Jeep.
Rachelle Denis was behind the wheel of the vehicle, going approximately 80 km/h, when she struck El-Kassis from behind in a shopping mall parking lot on July 2, 2010.
Denis was on trial for second-degree murder, but on Feb. 26, a jury found her guilty of manslaughter.
While deciding on a verdict, some jurors became emotional when reading about Denis’ troubled past, according to the Ottawa Citizen. Though there were issues of mental illness dating back to her childhood, Denis never once mentioned it during the legal proceedings.
Denis once had an affair with the victim and proceeded to stalk him once it ended, the court heard. She admitted wanting to hurt El-Kassis during police interviews.
Denis is due back in court in March to determine a date for her sentencing hearing.
—Moussa Sangaré-Ponce
Disgraced gynecologist faces Ottawa lawsuit
An alleged failed abortion could cost $1 million for Almonte gynecologist Michel Prevost.
Prevost, who stopped practising since after the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario deemed him unfit to practice on Feb. 2, is now being sued by Carleton Place resident Tania Brown.
According to Brown, she visited Prevost on Oct. 4, 2011 to have an abortion, but it was unsuccessful and she delivered a baby four months later.
Brown gave birth to a boy with defects including a smaller brain and a hole in his heart. She said she gave her son up for adoption. Brown said she sought legal counsel after the college shared their information with her last December.
None of the allegations have been proven in court. Prevost’s lawyer Karen Hamway told reporters she would fight for her client, but would not comment further on the case.
Prevost stopped his practice after an inspector deemed that he “lacked knowledge, skill, or judgment,” according to media reports. The inspector looked over 28 different cases in which Prevost operated. The cases included two failed abortions in which the women gave birth to children with abnormalities.
The college said it hasn’t determined whether medication could have caused the fetal abnormalities.
Prevost has signed a document stating that he will never practice medicine in Ontario again. The college added that he’ll no longer practice “obstetrics or gynecology in any jurisdiction.”
—Moussa Sangaré-Ponce
