The Sandy Hook Permanent Memorial Commission (SHPMC) and its professional Advisory Panel gathered in the Newtown High School Lecture Hall on February 8 and 13 to complete Phase 1-A of its design evaluation process and begin discussing Phase 1-B.

Phase 1-A has consisted of the commission and its panel reviewing each of the 188 submitted designs for the permanent memorial honoring the Sandy Hook Elementary School victims.

Designers' submissions were presented anonymously, with only an identification code displayed with the design.

Every submission was given an opportunity to be discussed and was projected on the lecture hall's screen for the commission, panel, and public to view. The commission and panel also received a large binder detailing each proposal and saw the designs digitally beforehand.

Members of the commission and panel who were unable to attend any of the Phase 1-A meetings were asked to send in their comments on the designs to be included in the night's discussion.

The Advisory Panel was present at each meeting to provide feedback and answer questions, but only the SHPMC members had the ability vote on whether they would like to keep a design for future consideration or eliminate a design completely from the running.

February 8 Meeting

A total of 50 designs were reviewed on February 8, with the SHPMC members voting to keep four for consideration. The designs labeled SH203, SH217, SH233, and SH240 were unanimously chosen for further evaluation.

Favorable features from these selected designs included a raised platform with the memorial benches surrounding a fountain; the use of both water and land elements; a slash through the landscape called "The Void" that evoked strong reactions from members, as it acknowledged the painful reality of loss; and the element of having an entrance overlooking the memorial grounds.

There were, however, several factors that contributed to the 46 designs not being selected to move on to the next phase. Some of those elements included designs that incorporated enclosed underground areas, like tunnels, with limited accessibility; large symbols only being able to be seen from areal views; sculptures of people, which based on original feedback from 12/14 families and first responders was asked to be avoided; incomplete designs that did not follow the guidelines; as well as designers having the incorrect number of victims represented in their submission.

Also, despite the SHPMC giving specific design guidelines stating that Phase 1-A would have designers remain anonymous, some submissions still included their names.

When reviewing one of those designs, SHPMC member Sarah Middeleer said disappointingly, "I wish they hadn't identified themselves."

February 13 Meeting

When the SHPMC members and Advisory Panel met the following week, they finished reviewing the remaining 28 design submissions.

Out of the night's designs, one submission labeled SH279 was voted on unanimously for keeping, bringing the collective total of designs selected for consideration to 14 out of 188.

However, after reviewing all of the submissions, SHPMC members requested they take another look at the designs they put on their list for consideration, acknowledging they may have a new perspective after seeing all their options.

The SHPMC unanimously voted again to keep the designs labeled SH37, SH66, SH81, SH102, SH108, SH130, SH141, SH147, SH179, SH217, SH233, SH240, and SH279, but decided to eliminate SH203 based feedback they received from the Advisory Panel on its lack of feasibility.

In addition to reevaluating the designs on their keep for consideration list, the group also reviewed five designs that had been eliminated during Phase 1-A but were not unanimously voted on for removal.

Ultimately, the SHPMC members voted to not include any of those designs for further consideration, but made a note to keep in mind certain elements they liked, like placement of accessible parking.

By the end of the night, the commission had selected 13 designs and began discussing what Phase 1-B would entail.

Now that the designs have been narrowed down, the SHPMC is ready to have the 26 families whose loved ones died on 12/14 review the short list of designs and give feedback.

SHPMC Chair Kyle Lyddy explained that the families will be invited to come view the designs in person on a scheduled weekday and/or a weekend, with SHPMC present if they have questions, as well as be given the option to review the designs digitally.

Tricia Pinto, SHPMC member and mother of Jack Pinto who died on 12/14, has offered to help with communication between the families and the commission, saying, "I think it's a good idea to do both options."

The 26 families will also be able to submit their feedback to a separate SHPMC e-mail address specifically created for families.

The SHPMC will then compile all feedback they received from the 26 families prior to the commission's regularly scheduled meeting on Thursday, March 8.

Members of the community that would like to offer feedback on the designs selected for consideration are invited to meet with the SHPMC in the Newtown High School's Lecture Hall on March 15, from 7 to 9 pm, and March 17, from 9 to 11 am.

The SHPMC will review all submitted community input before its regularly scheduled April 12 meeting, where they plan to narrow the designs down to three to five submissions.

Now that Phase 1-A is completed, the public can view all the SHPMC design proposals on the commission's website.

For more information on the Sandy Hook Permanent Memorial Commission, visit sandyhookpermanentmemorial.com or e-mail the commission at sandyhookpermanentmemorial@gmail.com.