Amending the Mental Health Act
Ottawa Centre Liberal MPP Richard Patten is seeking changes to provincial laws that would allow psychiatric patients with a history of violence to be forcibly treated and monitored.
Patten recently told a coroner’s inquest that he plans to provide for community treatment orders in his private member’s bill to amend the Ontario Mental Health Act.
Such orders would compel psychiatric outpatients to take medication and report to medical appointments as a condition for their release from hospital.
Patten’s amendment is to be considered by the justice committee later this year.
— Centretown News
Hall of Fame Toronto bound?
The Canadian Sports Hall of Fame may not be coming to Ottawa after all.
Hall of Fame officials are now looking at land near the base of Toronto’s CN Tower for the Hall’s new location. They were originally considering moving the Hall to the Government Conference Centre, located across from the Chateau Laurier.
Senator Trevor Eyton, Hall of Fame chairman, said the Ottawa site didn’t look like it was going to work.
The Hall is currently located on the grounds of the CNE and only receives visitors during the fair each August.
–Travis Brine
Intersections among worst
Two intersections in Centretown were among the region’s most accident plagued in 1996, a regional report says.
Catherine and O’Connor was the second worst with 34 accidents. The worst was Merivale and Meadowlands in Nepean with 37. Elgin and Laurier recorded 26.
But there is good news: the number of deaths, injuries and collisions on the region’s roads were the lowest in 10 years.
New signs were recently put up at the O’Connor-Catherine intersection to help motorists.
—Centretown News