Pulse nightclub memorial timeline: What's happened in 9 years of planning?
ORLANDO, Fla. - Thursday marks nine years since the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, one of the deadliest mass shootings in United States history.
After nearly a decade, the City of Orlando is continuing to push forward with its plans for a memorial honoring the 49 lives lost. Here's a look at the timeline of events over the last few years to bring the memorial to fruition.
Pulse memorial nine years later
Timeline:
In 2018, the onePulse Foundation was given $10 million from the City of Orlando's tourism tax fund to help build a memorial museum.
In 2019, the foundation was finally able to buy the piece of property not far from the Pulse site.
On June 25, 2021, Former President Joe Biden signed legislation designating Pulse Nightclub as a national memorial.
Between 2018 and 2021, onePulse spent nearly $7 million to begin acquiring property and designing the memorial.
Controversy soon followed, as survivors and families of the victims began questioning the foundation's management and use of funds. The committee that formed to help the city move forward with the project also started having significant disagreements.
Pulse Memorial Advisory Committee finalizes plans
The Pulse Memorial Advisory Committee finalized its recommendations for the memorial to honor the victims of the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting.
In 2022, Barbara Poma, owner of the nightclub and founder of onePulse, stepped down. However, she did not sell the nightclub property.
In 2023, the foundation was dissolved, and the museum project was canceled. The foundation repaid nearly $395,000 in state grant funds that had been allocated for the project but were not utilized. That's when the City of Orlando took over responsibility for the project.
On Oct. 27, 2023, the city purchased the nightclub property for $2 million and established an advisory board to guide the design process. The sale was finalized after the foundation was unable to reach an agreement with the owners to donate the property.
In December, the memorial moved one step closer to reality with a committee narrowing the design to one option. In February, the final design for the memorial was unveiled.
Earlier this month, the Orange County Commission then unanimously approved a $5 million contribution toward the project.
What is the Pulse memorial?
The backstory:
The Pulse Memorial represents a powerful step toward healing for Orlando and the broader LGBTQ+ community, offering a space for remembrance and reflection.
The memorial will be built at the original site of the nightclub, replacing the current interim tribute. The estimated total cost is $12 million, with the City of Orlando providing the majority of funding.
The memorial’s design aims to honor the victims while also serving as a symbol of resilience and community. However, the ongoing debate about the inclusion of the breached wall reflects the delicate balance between memory and healing, which is a sensitive topic for survivors and victims’ families.
The proposed design for the memorial includes demolishing the nightclub but preserving key elements, such as portions of the dance floor and outlining the building’s footprint with benches. Renderings shown at the final design meeting include an "Angel Ellipse," a healing garden, a survivor’s wall and space for the names of all 49 victims, along with individual memorials.
What we don't know:
A final funding agreement between Orange County and the City of Orlando is still pending. It’s also unclear if additional fundraising will be needed to cover remaining costs or when construction will officially begin.
Specifics on how the design elements — such as the Angel Ellipse and Healing Garden — will be implemented have not been fully released.
Tomorrow marks 9 years since Pulse
Tomorrow will mark nine years since the deadly mass shooting at Pulse nightclub in Orlando. City of Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer joins Good Day Orlando to talk about the tragic events impact on the community and share details on the 2025 Pulse Remembrance Ceremony taking place tomorrow.
2025 Pulse Remembrance Ceremony
Local perspective:
Since the tragic event, the Central Florida community has come together every year to remember the lives of those lost.
This year is no different. The City of Orlando will host a remembrance ceremony on Thursday that will kick off at 5:30 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church in downtown Orlando.
The ceremony will include the reading of the names of the 49 angels, the tolling of 49 bells, remarks from family members and survivors, as well as musical and cultural performances.
What happened during the Pulse nightclub shooting?
The backstory:
On June 12, 2016, the Central Florida community was forever impacted after 49 people were killed, and dozens of others were injured, in a mass shooting during Latin Night at Pulse nightclub, located just south of downtown Orlando.
At the time, the event was the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history.
The shooter, 29-year-old Omar Mateen, was shot and killed by Orlando police officers after a three-hour standoff.
Mateen said he was carrying out the shooting on behalf of the Islamic State (IS), saying the shooting was "triggered" by a U.S.-led bombing strike in Iraq that killed Abu Waheeb, an IS military commander, on May 6.
Victims' families offered tour of Pulse Nightclub before demolition
The families of the Pulse Nightclub shooting are being offered a tour of the site ahead of its planned demolition.
Who was killed in the Pulse nightclub shooting?
Dig deeper:
Forty-nine people were killed in the Pulse nightclub shooting.
Here are the victims:
- Stanley Almodovar III, 23 years old
- Amanda L. Alvear, 25 years old
- Oscar A. Aracena Montero, 26 years old
- Rodolfo Ayala Ayala, 33 years old
- Antonio Davon Brown, 29 years old
- Darryl Roman Burt II, 29 years old
- Angel Candelario-Padro, 28 years old
- Juan Chavez Martinez, 25 years old
- Luis Daniel Conde, 39 years old
- Cory James Connell, 21 years old
- Tevin Eugene Crosby, 25 years old
- Deonka Deidra Drayton, 32 years old
- Simón Adrian Carrillo Fernández, 31 years old
- Leroy Valentin Fernandez, 25 years old
- Mercedez Marisol Flores, 26 years old
- Peter Ommy Gonzalez Cruz, 22 years old
- Juan Ramon Guerrero, 22 years old
- Paul Terrell Henry, 41 years old
- Frank Hernandez, 27 years old
- Miguel Angel Honorato, 30 years old
- Javier Jorge Reyes, 40 years old
- Jason Benjamin Josaphat, 19 years old
- Eddie Jamoldroy Justice, 30 years old
- Anthony Luis Laureano Disla, 25 years old
- Christopher Andrew Leinonen, 32 years old
- Alejandro Barrios Martinez, 21 years old
- Brenda Marquez McCool, 49 years old
- Gilberto R. Silva Menendez, 25 years old
- Kimberly Jean Morris, 37 years old
- Akyra Monet Murray, 18 years old
- Luis Omar Ocasio Capo, 20 years old
- Geraldo A. Ortiz Jimenez, 25 years old
- Eric Ivan Ortiz-Rivera, 36 years old
- Joel Rayon Paniagua, 32 years old
- Jean Carlos Mendez Perez, 35 years old
- Enrique L. Rios, Jr., 25 years old
- Jean Carlos Nieves Rodríguez, 27 years old
- Xavier Emmanuel Serrano-Rosado, 35 years old
- Christopher Joseph Sanfeliz, 24 years old
- Yilmary Rodríguez Solivan, 24 years old
- Edward Sotomayor Jr., 34 years old
- Shane Evan Tomlinson, 33 years old
- Martin Benitez Torres, 33 years old
- Jonathan A. Camuy Vega, 24 years old
- Juan Pablo Rivera Velázquez, 37 years old
- Luis Sergio Vielma, 22 years old
- Franky Jimmy DeJesus Velázquez, 50 years old
- Luis Daniel Wilson-Leon, 37 years old
- Jerald Arthur Wright, 31 years old
STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 35 ORLANDO:
- Download the FOX Local app for breaking news alerts, the latest news headlines
- Download the FOX 35 Storm Team Weather app for weather alerts & radar
- Sign up for FOX 35's daily newsletter for the latest morning headlines
- FOX Local: Stream FOX 35 newscasts, FOX 35 News+, Central Florida Eats on your smart TV
The Source: This story was written based on information gathered from previous reporting, the City of Orlando, the Orange County Commission and the Pulse Memorial Advisory Committee.