author of the stone ornaments of the interior decoration was initially Aleksandar Deroko, whose plans were executed on all of the capitals at the columns between narthexes and naos and the altar apse. They were executed by the Swiss sculptor Josif Grassi prior to WW II. After the long delay during the communist period, the decorative work was overseen by Dragomir Acović and executed by Nebojša Savović Neš. A variety of different white marbles from Italy and Greece, green marbles from Italy, South America and India, dark and bright red marbles from Italy and India, yellow and greenish onyx, white limestone, red and white travertin and blue lapis lazuli. These decorative stones cover 1500 m2. Plateau Discontinuous construction over decades produced numerous mistakes, one of which is the surrounding of the church which remained unfinished and nonfunctional. The construction of the National Library in 1973 affected massively the originally envisioned 1926 design by Deroko and Nestorović. Three architectural design competitions for arranging the plateau which surrounds the church (Vračar or Saint Sava's Plateau) were organized after World War II. One of the rejected but popular designs, Mihajlo Mitrović and Mario Jobst's, was invoked. Using denivelation of the Bulevar Oslobođenja, they envisioned the wide pedestrian connection with the Park Milutin Milanković across the boulevard. Denivelation would also allow for two large garages one of which would be used by the church visitors. The square in front of the temple would have green areas on its rim, and would include the Alley of the Greats (with monuments to all major members of the medieval Nemanjić dynasty), while the section across the boulevard would be adapted into the green, children area. 1990 project On the fourth competition, organized in 1989, the project designed by architects Vladimir Macura and Đorđe Bobić was finally accepted in 1990. As with all the other aspects of the church construction, this one was controversial, too, as it was publicly criticized with disputes even reaching the courts of law. Citizens organized in groups and signed petitions against the project under the slogan "We don't want New Belgrade on Vračar, we want small Montmartre around the church". Construction finally began in 2003, and the works were ceremonially opened by prime minister Zoran Živković. The works were pushed in order to be finished by February 2004, for celebration of 200th anniversary of the First Serbian Uprising. The plateau covers some ,