Vietnam War memorial ready to open after phase one; phase two stalled by exhibit disagreement with parks agency

Phase one of a Vietnam War Memorial on the Oregon State Capitol grounds was dedicated and is open to the public, but a second "exhibit" phase is stalled by disagreement with the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department and gaps in funding, the memorial fund told the Senate Committee on Veterans, Emergency Management, Federal and World Affairs.

"Phase 1 of the memorial was dedicated on November 22nd. It's now open to the public," Steve Bates, president of the Vietnam War Memorial Fund, told the committee during an informational update. Bates said the nonprofit has paid all phase one costs to date and has three display panels on order; he expects installation before March 31.

The fund reported a phase-one budget of $3,699,929 and said it finished about $32,100 under budget. Bates said funding for phase one split roughly 51.2% private and 48.8% state funds — slightly exceeding the fund's goal of a 50/50 split.

Bates said phase two, described as the exhibit phase and estimated at $3,181,500, is on hold because the memorial fund and the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD) disagree about who will control exhibit content and who will pay for development. "OPRD then proposed taking over the project, providing some of the expensive content development, but not allowing the Vietnam War Memorial Fund to have any editorial input," Bates said. He added, "As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, we must have control over the product on which our donated dollars are spent. Our board of directors could go to jail if we're not careful about how we proceed."

Bates said he plans to ask the capital construction subcommittee this legislative session for $1 million in state capital funding to help leverage the rest of the money. He told the committee Representative Kevin Mannix said he would consider sponsoring the request. Bates said the memorial fund intends to raise the remaining roughly $2.18 million if a legislative appropriation can be secured.

Committee members voiced support and suggested outreach to veteran service organizations. Chair Manning and other senators urged the fund to pursue additional private donors and national veterans groups. Bates said the fund has submitted an exhibit plan under a memorandum of understanding with OPRD; OPRD rejected the plan in spring 2024 and later proposed developing content without the nonprofit's editorial control.

Bates told the committee that the fund is negotiating a contract with a landscape architect to update phase-two construction documents but that current fund balances are insufficient to sign the contract. He closed by asking legislators and community groups to support the capital request and to help the nonprofit reach its fundraising goal.

If no agreement with OPRD is reached and the requested appropriation is not secured, Bates said there are no firm dates for phase-two construction or completion.

Questions and follow-up from the committee focused on potential donor outreach and next steps for securing legislative sponsorship. Bates said he would continue discussions with veterans organizations and legislators and return with updates to the committee when available.