Orlando to Buy Pulse Nightclub and Turn It into a Memorial

The City of Orlando reached a deal this past Friday to buy Pulse nightclub, and plans to turn the site of the horrific June 12 massacre into a memorial. The city and the club's owners negotiated a price of $2.25 million. In order for the deal to go through definitively, it must be approved by the Orlando City Council, which will meet to make a decision next week.

Mayor Buddy Dyer announced plans to leave the club as-is for 12 to 18 months in a video posted to Twitter today, leaving mourners from the community and around the country a little more time before it is changed in some way. As of now there are no official plans for what shape the memorial will eventually take, and Dyer said he wants that to arrange a system so that process can be informed by community input.

In an interview with the Orlando Sentinel, he said the ultimate goal was to "create something to honor the memory of the victims that are deceased [and] those that were injured, and a testament to the resilience of our community."

On July 7, venue co-owner Barbara Pomo formed a not-for-profit corporation called OnePulse Foundation with the purpose of "conceiving, funding and aiding in the construction of a permanent memorial on the existing Pulse site."

In late June, [Pulse's resident DJs opened up about life after the Orlando shooting](Pulse's Resident DJs Open Up About Life After the Orlando Shooting). Pulse was founded on love, respect, and acceptance in 2004: read the story of the club's history as told by club patrons and nonprofit partners.

It's important that our community is a part of determining the future of the Pulse site, which has significance to us all.— Mayor Buddy Dyer (@orlandomayor)November 8, 2016

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