Opponents seek halt to Victims of Communism memorial

Architectural professionals and community groups are going to court to halt work on a controversial monument to victims of communism. The groups have begun an application in Federal Court challenging the National Capital Commission’s decision to break ground for the project. The lawsuit by the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, Heritage Ottawa, and architects Barry Padolsky and Shirley Blumberg alleges the NCC violated its own procedures and acted illegally in deciding to prepare the monument site, despite having no finalized and approved design for it. The monument has sparked controversy because it is seen as an ideologically driven project by the Harper government that would be out of sync with its surroundings.