After years of searching, a spot for a new Bonney Lake Veteran’s memorial is finally about to become a reality.

“We’re very excited about it,” Greater Bonney Lake Veterans Committee Chairman David Colbeth said.

The new memorial is being designed for placement in a former city retention pond at the corner of state Route 410 and Main Street, across the street from the city’s Interim Justice Center.

Colbeth described the design as a drive-by memorial that would be “visible, evident” from the road. Colbeth said the scale would be about 10 to 12 feet, approximately the size of the wooden sign post presently standing at the location.

The design would also incorporate the star design presently used by the committee.

Colbeth said the committee, which has 501(c)3 nonprofit status, has some money put aside, but estimated the cost to be at least $50,000, based on the Lakewood Fallen Officer Memorial’s $80,000 price tag.

Colbeth said the Veterans’ Committee came together four or five years ago and has been working toward finding a site to put a memorial in Bonney Lake. The group identified multiple sites within the city, including the former Washington State University Demonstration Forest, Ascent Park and others.

None of the sites panned out, however and the hope started to shift toward the city’s new downtown core.

Colbeth said the idea to use decommissioned stormwater retention ponds was first floated by Public Works Director Dan Grigsby and the triangle area at the intersection downtown was the best location of the bunch.

Colbeth said it was a “great spot” and would be good for possible parades on Main Street on Memorial Day and Veterans Day.

“It’s not just a memorial, it’s a remembrance,” he said.

The committee is also continuing to work toward a larger memorial in the forest.

Colbeth said a memorial for veterans is an important part of the city of Bonney Lake coming into its own.

“It’s part of what a city should have,” he said.

Mayor Neil Johnson, whose father is a veteran, agreed and said it was important for a city to acknowledge its residents who made the sacrifices to provide freedom for all.

“We should create some parks that reflect a thank you to veterans in the community,” Johnson said. “It’s easily forgotten what people in the military and the service do to protect our freedoms.”

Johnson called the new memorial a starting point and said the donation of a flag flown in Iraq to the Justice Center by James Bouchard made the location “make a lot of sense” by linking the two areas.

Johnson also said the location will also help establish Main Street as a central location for city events.

Colbeth said he was grateful for the memorial being on the highway because it would help be an everyday reminder of what military families go through.

“Never forget,” Colbeth said. “Whether you have someone who is a vet or not in your family, you certainly know someone who is.”