Crews have started demolishing Pulse nightclub in Orlando to make way for a permanent memorial honoring the 49 lives lost in the 2016 mass shooting. The City of Orlando purchased the property in 2023 for $2 million and plans to invest $12 million into building a permanent memorial, which is expected to open in 2027.
This one is very personal for me.
I have a friend who survived Pulse, and I will never forget getting a text around 3 a.m. that night saying there was a mass shooting and that he was alive. I remember waking up later that morning and blowing up his phone because I did not know what to do. I just needed to make sure he was really okay.
Pulse was more than a nightclub. It was a safe space, especially on Latin night, where people were just living, dancing, and being themselves.
Seeing this space turn into a memorial feels heavy, but also necessary. It is a reminder that those 49 lives will never be forgotten.