Community Memorial Honoring Theater Shooting Victims Relocated

AURORA, Colo. (CBS4)- The City of Aurora on Thursday collected items from the temporary community memorial that sprung up near the Century 16 Theater where 12 people were shot and killed earlier this summer.

"There is no plan for an event like this, a timetable for an event like this. Different families and groups will move on at different paces and we need to accommodate that however we can," said Community Development Manager Aaron Gagne.

A crew of about 30 volunteers gathered the flowers, toys, cards, candles, stuffed animals, and all other items reflecting sympathy and love that had accumulated since the shooting on July 20 near the intersection of S. Sable Blvd. and E. Centrepoint Drive.

Victims' families were joined with a victim services team that escorted them to the memorial site prior to dismantlement. They were allowed to take the items left for their loved ones that they wanted to keep.

The threat of the weather motivated the move which has happened sooner than originally planned.

The Aurora History Museum supervised the removal to ensure the safe and secure preservation of these items.

Many of those items, including banners, have been archived and will be available for display in the lobby of the Aurora Municipal Center located at 15151 E. Alameda Parkway.

The Aurora History Museum is handling the archival of all items at the memorial, and under the supervision of Jennifer Kuehner, museum executive director, all items will be inventoried, categorized and stored.

The others not available for public display have been housed at a secure and private warehouse in Aurora. Only family and museum staff will have access indefinitely.

"It brought up emotions that I hadn't dealt with, dealing with it physically at the site. It's going to become even harder," said Kuehner.

City crews took all organic items, such as wreaths and flowers, to be mulched and recycled for use in the city parks.