LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — As we remember all those who died at the Route 91 Harvest Music Festival on Oct. 1, 2017 on Tuesday— we have new details for the memorial now actively in the works near the strip.
It is set to be built near Reno and Giles Street at the south side of the strip— where the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history happened nearly seven years ago.
Work is expected to start within the next six months and take a little less than 3 years to complete. The memorial's committee said they hope to turn a portion of this now empty lot where the shooting happened into a memorial honoring the fallen, the injured and the heroes of that deadly day by the 10th remembrance in 2027.
“I guess it’s probably down to a week now, a week doesn’t go by that I don’t think of that night,” said Brian Rogers, Las Vegas Paramedic who responded to 1 October mass shooting.
Karessa Royce, a 1 October survivor said:
We can’t change what has happened, but we can ensure it is never forgotten, and that’s what this memorial represents.
Rogers and Royce are both part of the team putting this permanent memorial together.
“So many of us, our lives will never be the same and for 58 families, their loved ones are no longer here with us. And they have to live with the hole in their life forever,” Royce said.
Derek Sola, the lead architect for the Forever One memorial commented on the memorial shape.
“The memorial shape is in the shape of an infinity symbol, it’s really meant to stand for infinite love and infinite memory for the victims. That shape then is the path,” Sola said.
Sola works for JCJ Architecture, the company in charge of the design of this project.
Channel 13's Ryan Ketcham met Sola at the future site to learn how all of the ideas, concerns and hopes are coming together.
“We have Reno Avenue here and Giles Street, we really felt that this would be the side of the main entry,” Sola said.
On Monday, the Vegas Strong Fund announced the goal of a three-year time window to open the memorial.
These are rendering of the future memorial, located on 2 acres of land donated by MGM resorts.
The design is not only created by Sola and his team, but also inspired by so many in the community.
 JCJ Architecture |  JCJ Architecture |  JCJ Architecture |
 JCJ Architecture |  JCJ Architecture |  JCJ Architecture |
Sola said they took the communities thoughts into the design process, from quiet areas designed to allow visitors to escape the noise of the area to 58 candles representing those who died and even a screening wall to block the view of the Mandalay Bay tower from the memorial.
“And that screen wall really shields sight lines to the hotel tower behind, obviously that could be quite a traumatic experience viewing that,” Sola said.
Royce said she can't wait to pay her respects at the new memorial.
While I think it will be a moment where we’re all going to be excited to have the space, I think there will always be a somber energy that’s carried.
The Vegas Strong Fund has yet to release the final cost of this project, but they estimate it'll cost tens of millions of dollars to build.
They are expected to start fundraising efforts, asking the community for donations soon.
Organizers tell Channel 13, they expect to have an estimate of the amount still needed to cover the project, between three to six months from now.
To donate to this project, click here.
You can learn more about the memorial and donate here.
