VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — The Virginia Beach community and surrounding areas have marked May 31 religiously for the past five years, but Friday, the day had a second purpose with the dedication of a space that will become the permanent memorial for the 12 people killed in the deadly mass shooting at the city’s municipal center.
Building 2 is where 12 people were killed and several more seriously injured in the 2019 mass shooting. It was later closed and renovated from top to bottom. The remodeled space is now the new police headquarters.
At 4 p.m. Friday, the city hosted a ceremony at the future memorial site, starting with a moment of silence at 4:06 p.m. to represent the first 911 call that went out.
Rebecca Lear was in Building 2 when the shooting began. She’s impressed with the design and concept behind the memorial.
“I could not be happier,” she said following Friday’s ceremony. “It represents our feelings, and it represents the lives that were lost, and the potential that was lost.”
Mayor Bobby Dyer asked the gathering to “let us commit to building a world where public service is honored, where kindness prevails, and where tragedy transforms into resilience.”
Signs went up around the city to commemorate May 31. People passing by the signs will be able to see the Love for VB Symbol or the Forget Me Not Flower.
Gov. Glenn Yougnkin also ordered all Virginian and American flags to be lowered to half-staff on Friday to mark the fifth anniversary of the shooting.
The site at Nimmo Parkway and Princess Anne Road will incorporate the natural surroundings, including a big oak tree which will honor first responders that day.
Painted stones will be part of a survivors grove, and timelines will be engraved on walls honoring the lives of the 12 victims. There will also be a fountain and names of the people who lost their lives.
The city is working on removing trees to make way for the memorial.
“At night, 150 lights will twinkle in those trees representing the collective 150 years of public service those we lost gave to our city,” said Charlotte Zito, a member of the memorial committee.
Local architect Clay Dills was hesitant at first because he knew several of the victims, but he realized that this was a meaningful project in the city where he lives.
“This is probably the most impactful project we’ve ever worked on,” Dills said. “It’s certainly a public one and it’s very visible, but it means so much.”
Dills said the construction on the memorial will begin soon, and he hopes to have it completed by 2026.
Chad Morris with Virginia Beach Parks and Recreation is helping with the design. Morris told 10 On Your Side it will bring people together.
“It still feels pretty fresh,” Morris said. “We’re in the five year era of that that tragedy. But when you see that logo and that symbol, to me, it totally takes me back to that day. It’s a day you’ll never forget and obviously always reflect on those that I worked with personally down there at the city and those that deal with every day in continuing our work here.”
Note: Anyone looking for a space to honor the victims can visit the Virginia Beach Monarch Memorial at Bugg Plaza over at ODU. Six of the 12 people who were killed graduated from or attended the university.
