Dozens of people gathered outside the former Pulse nightclub the morning of Wednesday, March 18 as crews demolished the building where a mass shooting took place nearly a decade ago.
It took roughly two hours for the structure to come down, according to the Orlando Sentinel. Crews will continue working over the next several weeks to clear the area and make way for a memorial scheduled to be completed in 2027.
On June 12, 2016 a gunman opened fire inside the Orlando nightclub, killing 49 people and injuring dozens more.
“We think this is a big milestone,” Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer told the Sentinel this week. “We hope when we complete it — we know it won’t bring complete closure — but we hope it will give some peace of mind and give us a place where we can come and think about and remember the victims.”
Details about the Pulse nightclub memorial
During a meeting this month, the memorial’s designers, Gomez Construction and Borrelli and Partners, unveiled partial images of the project.
It’s said to be about 30% complete. According to Orlando TV station WESH, 60% of the design will be submitted in May, and construction is scheduled to begin in September.
According to Fox 35, the designers said the space is intended to provide “a place for reflection, remembrance and healing for survivors, families and the community.” The city of Orlando took over the project in 2024 after the onePULSE Foundation, which formed in the aftermath of the shooting, dissolved in November 2023.
Rainbow crosswalk removed at Pulse in 2025
Pulse made headlines in summer 2025 when its rainbow-colored crosswalk near the site was removed amid the Trump administration’s directive to crack down on “politically-charged street art.”
At the time, the Florida Department of Transportation said in a statement to USA TODAY that it restored the crosswalk to its “proper form” as part of the state’s effort to remove street art with “social, political or ideological interests.”
In a post on X, Gov. Ron DeSantis responded to criticism of the move by saying, “We will not allow our state roads to be commandeered for political purposes.”
Local activists and community members voiced their outrage over the removal. Orlando Mayor Dyer said in a statement that he was “devastated” to learn the crosswalk had been removed. He said the crosswalk was part of the larger memorial and was made colorful with permission from the state’s transportation department.
Michelle Spitzer is a journalist for The USA TODAY NETWORK-FLORIDA. As the network’s Rapid Response reporter, she covers Florida’s breaking news. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY, at https://floridatoday.com/newsletters.
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Site of Florida mass shooting, Pulse nightclub is demolished
