NEW YORK, May 14 (UPI) -- A memorial on the former World Trade Center site in New York has been stalled by design complaints and a leaked report shows it millions over budget.
"Reflecting Absence," artist Michael Arad's design that was chosen in January 2004 from more than 5,000 proposals, was to be a symbolic piece.
Visitors would descend into underground spaces and view the sky amid walls of water. The names of each victim would line an underground gallery and museum.
But critics pounced on safety concerns and disputes involving artistic vision, government bureaucracy and the feelings of victims, the Los Angeles Times reports.
On May 5, a report was leaked that put the price tag for the project at nearly $1 billion -- two times the amount Gov. George Pataki and Mayor Michael Bloomberg had wanted for a limit.
With only $131 million raised in private donations, the World Trade Center Memorial Foundation has frozen fundraising until the dispute over the design is settled.
The Twin Towers of the World Trade Center were destroyed in the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
