All traces of Paul Haggis' name being stripped from London, Ont. city park

The former Paul Haggis Park in London, Ont., as seen on Dec. 13, 2022. (Daryl Newcombe/CTV News London)

Oscar winner Paul Haggis has been stripped of a hometown honour in London, Ont. bestowed on him back in 2011.

On Tuesday, city council unanimously supported a motion by Coun. Elizabeth Peloza, Mayor Josh Morgan and Deputy Mayor Shawn Lewis to rename Paul Haggis Park on Bateman Trail.

“The sign will be removed by city staff, all reference to it will also be removed from the city website immediately,” explained Peloza. “Then the renaming of the park will go through the civic administration [process] and then it’ll be renamed.”

In November, the London native was found liable in a U.S. civil court and ordered to pay $10 million to a woman who accused him of rape.

Haggis was the screenwriter for the Oscar winning movies Crash and Million Dollar Baby.

Peloza explained that the decision aligns with London’s strategic priority to become a safe city for women and girls.

“We put the focus on making sure our community is inclusive and that our values match our words,” she said.