PIMA — After years of starts and stops, it appears the memorial to the 27 Pima men who lost their lives in World War II is ready to become reality.
Pima Town Manager Vernon Batty gave an update to the Town Council during a work session Tuesday, and asked for direction on a few items.
The memorial is located at the corner of 100 South and Main Street, across from Pima Elementary, and could share the lot with the Pima Library if that is the location selected when the library relocates for a new fire station.
Batty explained that the memorial has a pair of anonymous donors — one who donated $10,000 and another who poured the concrete for the sidewalks and bases of the flag poles. Which led to the first issue for which Batty was seeking direction.
“Apparently the wrong poles were purchased,” Batty said. “You get a package where the center one is tall and the other ones are shorter than the American flag. Well, the ones that we have are all the same size, and nobody knew that.”
Rather than tear up the existing concrete and purchase a new pole, Council member Georgia Luster suggested pouring an extra concrete block on the existing concrete slab, to elevate the center pole.
The other issue Batty wanted direction on was paving for parking. The plan calls for the town to pave the entire shoulder of 100 South, at a cost of about $40,000. However, due to the uncertainty about the library’s future location, he suggested paving only the area near the memorial, which would reduce the cost by at least half.
Other amenities associated with the memorial would be a cement statue of a kneeling soldier at a cost of $7,000, a mural by local artist Brandt Woods at a cost of $12,000, and flags and silhouette displays for the Pima Police and Fire Departments at a cost of $1,000.
The council also directed Batty to stay away from selling engraved bricks in the memorial’s walkway, due to the costs of engraving, installation and upkeep.
– Contributed Image
Under the design by Pima High School students Hannah Lofgreen and Analicia Sanchez, approved by the Town Council in 2021, there will be seven flag poles — one for four of the branches of the military services and one each for police and fire services — and three memorial stones — one with the names of the men killed during the war, one with an image of a bell, and the third thanking all who contributed to the memorial.
Total budget for the memorial is $228,500, which includes a $113,400 grant from United Way of Graham and Greenlee Counties.
There were 867 residents of Pima according to the 1940 U.S. Census. The 27 men who died during World War II represented 3 percent of the town’s population which, on a per capita basis, was the greatest loss of life by any city or town in the United States during the war.
That loss was addressed on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. Juan Ciscomani, R-Ariz., in 2023.
“It is clear that these Arizonans have a strong dedication to not only each other and their community, but service to our country as a whole,” Ciscomani said.
