Earl Crittenden. (Photo from Crittenden’s LinkedIn)
ORLANDO | Earl Crittenden, the chairman for the onePULSE Foundation’s board of trustees, is resigning his position, according to a press release from the organization sent on Oct. 26.
Crittenden joined the board in 2017 when onePULSE was first formed. “His term on the board expired in May of this year,” onePULSE wrote in its release. “Crittenden remained on the board through the challenges the organization faced this year in trying to negotiate a full donation of the Pulse nightclub property.”
This decision comes days after city commissioners voted unanimously to purchase the Pulse nightclub property from current owners Barbara and Rosario Poma, and their business partner Michael Panaggio, for $2 million making way for a permanent memorial to be built at that location by the City of Orlando.
In his statement, Crittenden said he was “proud of what this organization has accomplished in the last six-and-a-half years” but said it is now time for “new board leadership.”
“The Foundation, of course, has not achieved everything we set out to do and probably, the most notable was the consequence of not receiving a donation of the nightclub property to the Foundation from the property’s ownership this year, despite everyone’s efforts. We reach a new chapter with this past Monday’s news of the City of Orlando’s vote to purchase the nightclub parcel. I wholeheartedly applaud and support the City in its effort to create a permanent memorial on the site for the families, survivors and the Pulse-affected community. This time of transition is one that should also include new board leadership to guide the Foundation with any new collaborative opportunities with the City and the community that lie ahead.”
onePULSE stated that the organization has no decision currently on filling the board chair position. George Kalogridis, who is former president of the Walt Disney World Resort, will continue to serve as vice chair.
While onePULSE will no longer oversee the construction of a permanent Pulse memorial at the site of the nightclub, it is still going to be moving forward with a Pulse Museum, to be located at 438 W. Kaley St. Along with donations raised, onePULSE received $10 million in 2018 of Orange County Tourist Development Tax dollars in order to build the museum.
Spectrum News 13 reported that Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings plans to meet with members of onePULSE Oct. 27 to see where the foundation stands with it museum project.
Speaking with Watermark in June, onePULSE executive director Deborah Bowie said that the 44,000-square-foot building that currently sits at the future museum’s location will be repurposed into a multi-use communal space, including areas that can be used for conferences, trainings and events. She called the foundation’s previous plans for a memorial and museum a “hugely ambitious project.”
