ORLANDO, Fla. — The OnePulse Foundation announced Tuesday that plans for a permanent memorial at the site of the Pulse Nightclub fell through when the foundation could not come to an agreement with the owners of the property.
The Foundation had been planning and fundraising for years to build a national permanent memorial at the site of the tragedy to honor the 49 lives lost and all those affected by the terror mass shooting on June 12, 2016, by Omar Mateen.
However, after months of negotiations, the nonprofit stated it was unable to reach an agreement with owners Barbara and Rosario Poma for the full donation of the property.
The foundation responded with a statement:
“The onePULSE Foundation is disappointed to report that after months of negotiation an agreement could not be reached with Barbara Poma (the Founder of onePULSE Foundation), her husband, Rosario Poma, and their business partner, Michael Panaggio, for the full donation of the Pulse nightclub property. The Foundation had previously planned to build a permanent national memorial at the site to commemorate the 49 lives taken, survivors, first responders, and all those impacted by the June 12, 2016, tragedy.
As a result, onePULSE will provide an update mid-May, regarding moving forward with plans for the National Pulse Memorial on a new site, Orlando Health Survivors Walk and Pulse Museum.”
Barbara Poma co-founded Pulse nightclub in 2004 and founded the OnePulse Foundation after the 2016 terrorist attack that struck the Central Florida community.
Initially, they had planned to sell the property to the city of Orlando. After that fell through, the foundation moved forward with plans to build a permanent memorial at the site on Orange Avenue.
However, Barbara Poma stepped down from her role as executive director last month.
“In the completion of a planned leadership transition that began in 2021, Barbara Poma, Founder of the onePULSE Foundation, has stepped down from her position at the Foundation. Poma recently served as executive director before pivoting to focus her work on the Foundation’s national fundraising efforts as part of a new leadership structure. Poma was succeeded as executive director by Deborah Bowie in May 2022.
Poma co-founded Pulse nightclub in 2004, and the club became globally recognized as a joyful gathering place for the LGBTQIA+ community and their families.
The Foundation is grateful to Barbara for her many contributions, and commitment to onePULSE, and for being a lifetime advocate for the LGBTQIA+ community,” the foundation wrote in a statement on April 4, 2023.
The OnePulse Foundation plans to move forward with the memorial at a new site, the Orlando Health Survivors Walk and Pulse Museum.