Plans are now moving forward for the construction of a memorial space in El Paso that will pay tribute to the nearly two dozen people who died in a mass shooting at a local Wal-Mart in 2019.
The plans are calling for the creation of a circular plaza, with seating and landscaping that will surround seven granite markers in the center of the plaza.
Those markers will bear the names of the people who died.
The shooting took place on August 3, 2019 at the Wal-Mart located at 7101 Gateway West Boulevard on the east side of the city, and has since been described as the deadliest attack on Latinos in U.S. history, resulting in the death of 23 people and injuries to 22 others.
In the years since, various memorials have been created to honor those attacked that day, including a 30-foot-tall gold metal structure at the Wal-Mart itself called the Grand Candela, resembling a large candle. That memorial, put up near the edge of the parking lot directly off of Gateway Boulevard West, was unveiled in the fall of 2019.
A second memorial has seen the building of a semi-circle wall at Ascarte Park, located at 6900 Delta Drive. Built by the County of El Paso, the Ascarte Park memorial, which is called the Healing Garden, includes a series of bronze plaques bearing the names of the shooting victims.
The latest memorial is being undertaken by the City of El Paso and is expected to cost around $470,000 to complete. Funding for the project is coing out of a Quality of Life bond earlier approved by city voters.
The plaza is being created by well-known El Paso artist Tino Ortega, who has also created a series of murals in various pockets of the city honoring the Wal Mart victims.
Work on the new memorial is slated to begin later this year. City officials have said they hope to see the project completed sometime in 2024.
By Garry Boulard
