Ground broken for King memorial in D.C.

By Bob Keefe

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

After more than 20 years of fits and starts, organizers of a memorial in Washington honoring Martin Luther King Jr. are finally about to realize their dream.

In a ceremony along the cherry tree-lined banks of Washington's Tidal Basin, Interior Department Secretary Ken Salazar on Thursday officially signed a federal construction permit for the project.

The move clears the way for construction to begin in about two weeks on the four-acre, $120 million memorial.

"Where so many other great American heroes are honored, it is time to honor Martin Luther King Jr. right here in the nation's front door," Salazar said.

The memorial, anchored by a 28-foot-high statue of King, will be adjacent to the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial and in a direct line with the Jefferson Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial, where King gave his history-changing "I Have a Dream" speech in August 1963.

Among those in attendance Thursday was Atlanta resident Christine King Farris, King's sister, the last remaining sibling of the civil rights icon.

"I am overwhelmed, I am overjoyed," Farris said. "This is an emotional moment for me, for I would have never envisioned I would see a day like this."

Also in attendance from Atlanta was Skip Mason, president of the Alpha Phi Alpha, King's fraternity. It was four Washington-area members of the fraternity who first conceived the idea for the memorial more than two decades ago.

Since then, organizers have struggled with fundraising and getting government approvals for the project.

Still, there are hurdles in front of the project.

Harry Johnson, president and CEO of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project Foundation, said the group is still about $14 million short on fundraising. It has raised $106 million so far, he said.

The group nonetheless has letters of credit that will let it proceed immediately, Johnson said.

Construction is expected to take about two years.