Station Memorial Approved

The group working to build a memorial at the site of a 2003 nightclub fire that killed 100 people says it has received the go-ahead from Rhode Island.

Photo: AP Photo / Steven Senne, File

Supporters of a memorial for victims of The Station fire display an artist rendering in West Warwick, R.I., in February. The project is estimated to cost $1.4 million but supporters have raised less than $200,000.

Gina Russo of the Station Fire Memorial Foundation said Friday that the Department of Environmental Management and the Department of Transportation have approved the project. She calls it a big step and says work will start in the spring.

Among the group’s first steps will be bringing in gravel to smooth out the site, installing wiring and putting in a well system for irrigation.

The group will not dig directly on the fire site.

Russo says it has about $200,000 in the bank and is still working to raise the $2 million it estimates it needs to build and maintain the memorial.

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