MGM donates land near Mandalay Bay for 1 October shooting memorial

MGM Resorts International, the casino company that owns the former Las Vegas Strip venue that in 2017 became the site of a deadly mass shooting, is donating part of the property for a permanent memorial.

As announced by Clark County on Monday, the donation includes 2 acres of land on the northeast corner of the site where the Route 91 Harvest festival was held.

“Having a permanent memorial commemorating the victims and heroes of 1 October is vital to our community’s continued healing, and we are honored to donate a portion of the Village site to help bring that memorial to fruition,” stated MGM Resorts to Fox5.

Furthermore, the company promised to keep working with the memorial committee on the design, which has asked for the public to provide input on its artistic and educational features on a survey which runs through August 15.

“The public input received through the first survey and focus groups have affected the evolution of this process every step of the way,” said Clark County Commission Vice Chairman Jim Gibson, whose district includes the concert site.

Out of the approximate 6,000 responses received on the prior survey, more than 65% called it “extremely or very important” to have the memorial at the site, which has remained idle since the shooting.

“Given that clear preference, MGM Resorts International decided to donate two acres on the northeast corner of the concert site, adjacent to the church, for the memorial,” Gibson said.

Said church refers to the Shrine of the Most Holy Redeemer, a Roman Catholic church that became a refuge for victims.

The 2017 shooting left 58 people dead, and two more died from their injuries in the following years. More than 850 people from Nevada, California, 13 other U.S. states and Canada were injured. Federal investigators could not identify a clear motive for the shooting.