Club Q owners reveal design for memorial to victims of November 2022 shooting in Colorado Springs
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- We got the first look Friday at the design concept for a permanent memorial outside the Club Q bar where five patrons were shot to death and 17 others were injured by gunfire last fall.
Club Q owners are working with HB&A, a local architectural firm, on the $300,000 project; the design awaits city approval with construction starting next month and completion in late summer.
The memorial will feature five engraved pillars, each 12 feet high, to represent the five victims killed; 17 boulders will be in remembrance of surviving victims who were shot.
A flagpole, 40 feet high, will be part of the memorial -- with a spotlight shining upward for day and night visibility.
Also included are bench seating, a security wall and thousands of mosaics to represent thousands of people emotionally affected by the tragedy.
According the the club's GoFundMe page, supporters have donated more than $61,000 to the project.
Club owners announced plans in February to make the memorial part of the club's overall renovation; work is expected to start soon and be completed in time for a fall reopening.
To see images of the memorial design and for donation information, visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/official-club-q-fundraiser.
Matthew Haynes, Club Q's owner, believes that the memorial is the first of its kind in the country.
"We felt it was very important that in choosing what Club Q is doing to memorialize, that it was achievable, cost-effective, that it was something able to be done quickly, and we're not waiting years to get to this point," he said. "It is our full intent that this will never be forgotten. This will be here for generations to come, and to make sure that it sends a clear message -- that hate cannot win."
Sabrina and Jeff Aston are the parents of Daniel Aston, 28, who was killed in the shooting; Haynes showed them the design concept at the club's office Friday.
"I really like the way it looks," Sabrina said. "It's going to look great. And yes, it will memorialize all five who died, and all the ones that were injured. So, I think that this is a really good thing."
Jeff said that while the natural impulse may be to try and forget such a tragedy, he doesn't want to.
"I always want to remember my son and honor his memory -- and I'm sure that all the other families feel the same way," he said.
The defendant and accused shooter, Anderson Aldrich, 22, is in jail and awaiting trial on 317 counts of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, assault and bias-motivated crimes causing bodily injury at the popular LGBTQIA+ nightspot.
His next scheduled court appearance is May 30th.
