Almost a year later, memorial to victims of Philly building collapse moving forward

As the first anniversary of the building collapse that killed six in Center City Philadelphia nears, efforts continue to construct a memorial park at the site where the Salvation Army thrift store stood.

The process of taking the former thrift store property and transforming it into a place for recreation and reflection is well under way, said John White of the 22nd and Market Memorial Committee.

“We’ve raised about 40 percent of the money we think will be necessary,” he said. “They city has taken possession of the land from the Salvation Army and made it available for this purpose, so it is under our control.

And the group has talked with the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts to select the artist who will do the memorial, White said.

A ceremony is planned for the site on Thursday, the one-year anniversary of the day a building undergoing demolition collapsed on the thrift store, killing six people and injuring 14.

“The mayor will make some remarks about the role the city has played in it, some of the families of the victims will be there and they will also speak,” he said. “We’ll have some songs of a religious nature … we’ll just recognize what happened and dedicate ourselves to being sure that something’s established on the site.”