Monument to be built in memory of victims of Tops supermarket shooting in Buffalo

A monument to the 10 people killed in a racially motivated shooting at a Tops Friendly Market in Buffalo, New York, in May is now being planned, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Friday.

An 18-year-old suspect has been indicted on federal hate crime charges and other counts in the May 14 grocery store shooting that killed 10 people and injured three others. The victims at the Tops grocery store on Jefferson Avenue, in a majority Black neighborhood, ranged in age from 32 to 86.

To memorialize the victims, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Friday that  a monument will be built in East Buffalo to honor and remember those killed.

“I hope people will leave there with resolve in their heart that we must continue our fight to remove guns and not allow teenagers to be able to buy an AR-15 and go across the border to Pennsylvania and to buy a high-capacity magazine and be capable of a military-style assault weapon that could slaughter our beloved family members,” Hochul said, speaking of the memorial.

The monument will be developed by a commission called the May 14 Memorial Commission, which will be chaired by the Rev. Mark E. Blue, according to a statement from the governor's office, and will be designed by people who will be “sensitive to what the families want,” Hochul said at a press conference Friday.

The commission will be in charge of citing and acquiring land; engaging with victims' families and people in surrounding communities for input and architectural design concepts; securing funds; and maintenance of the memorial, the governor said.

Hochul said funds for the memorial will come from city, state and private individuals and companies. A deadline for the memorial’s completion has not been determined, but the governor indicated that she would like to see the project “move forward quickly.”

"Five months ago, 10 Black Buffalonians were senselessly slaughtered solely because of the color of their skin, and through the May 14th Memorial Commission, we are ensuring that their lives and legacies are honored," Hochul said in a statement. "The May 14th Memorial Commission will create a lasting reminder of the losses we experienced that awful day."

After being closed for two months, the Tops Buffalo store reopened “quietly and respectfully,” according to a statement released by the company in July. The store had undergone a total renovation, and looks “completely different inside,” said Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown.

It had been reported that many people were reluctant to return to the neighborhood grocery store, but Tops store officials were committed to reopening the store, and according to John Persons, president of Tops, providing the community “with fresh food options as soon as possible.”

On July 14, the two-month anniversary of the mass shooting, Tops Friendly Markets along with guest associates, residents, representatives and local dignitaries came together at the fully renovated store at 1275 Jefferson Avenue to “honor and respect all victims and impacted associates and community members,” said the company.