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The group sponsoring the proposed Memorial to the Victims of Communism has raised “close to $1 million” so far towards its expected $1.5-million share of the cost of the proposed memorial, the National Capital Commission’s board heard Monday.

Before the board unanimously approved design guidelines for the new memorial at the Garden of the Provinces and Territories, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson, an ex-officio member, noted that the sponsor, Tribute to Liberty, has had difficulty raising money for the project.

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“I have this fear that (work on the memorial) starts and they run out of money and we have a half-finished memorial,” Watson said.

An official from the Department of Canadian Heritage told the board that Tribute to Liberty recently reported it had raised close to $1 million.

She said the agreement between Canadian Heritage, Tribute to Liberty and the NCC states that sufficient funds need to be available before a design contract is signed or any construction starts.