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Blumberg doesn’t understand why a memorial to victims of communism was given such an “incredibly prominent, almost sacrosanct” site. “It is so centrally placed that it would seem to quite overshadow Canada’s true history.”

She doesn’t have any problem with the memorial going on another site, “but I have a massive problem, a huge problem, with this memorial going on that site. I think it completely misrepresents and skews what Canada is all about.”

Moreover, Blumberg believes there is “no way” the memorial can be built for its estimated price of $5.5 million.

“The way it is now, it’s at least two or three times that, with the technologies they are proposing for the concrete.

“The kind of architectural building technology they’re talking about is super-expensive, at the cutting edge, unaffordable and I don’t think would stand up to our climate.”

Last week, Heritage Minister Shelly Glover said $5.5 million is the “approximate” cost of the memorial, adding: “As we move forward, we’ll have a more final number.”

Another problem is the sheer bulk of the winning design, which features 100 million “memory squares” — each representing a life lost to communist regimes — embedded in parallel rows of concrete triangles, rising to 14.5 metres at their highest point.

The memorial will “completely dominate” nearby buildings, including the Supreme Court of Canada, “which should be on centre stage,” Blumberg said.

She also complained that the memorial is “euro-centric” and she was concerned the site would be understood as a graveyard by Asians.