The Arizona House of Representatives has approved a plan for a memorial on the site where 19 Granite Mountain Hotshots died last year fighting the Yarnell Hill Fire.
The bill sets aside $500,000 in state money for the memorial, though one of the sponsors says she hopes it will be paid for with private donations.
The bill now goes to the state Senate.
State Rep. Karen Fann says the state is not alone in trying to secure the land.
“In the meantime, I have had family members, the widows who have come to me, I have had other people come to me and say Karen, would it be alright if we buy the property instead of the state and I said absolutely, I would love that,” Fann said.
She said she has heard suggestions to build something at Wesley Bolin Plaza in downtown Phoenix to honor the victim’s memory. She said it is not known what the memorial would look like or how big it would be.
Updated 3/4/2014 at 10:17 a.m.