A small group of 11 met Wednesday at the senior center in Simi Valley to share ideas on establishing a memorial to honor the victims of the Sept. 12 Metrolink crash.

It was the first workshop the city has held since the City Council decided in October to look into the construction of a permanent memorial that would serve as a remembrance of what officials have called an unprecedented tragedy for the community.

Of the 25 people who died in the collision between a Metrolink passenger and a Union Pacific freight train, 10 were Simi residents.

The city was seeking input on possible locations for the memorial, design options and who should be recognized.

"The city wants (to know) what those who were affected, and remain affected for the rest of their lives, want," City Manager Mike Sedell told the group.

While the Simi train station has been identified as the likely location for the memorial, the city has also been in talks with Los Angeles City Councilmemember Greig Smith about possibly working together on a memorial that would be located at the crash site in Chatsworth.

Wayne Evans, however, said that he felt it would be most appropriate to have the memorial in Simi since it is the community that lost the most.

"Nothing against L.A. or anybody, but I think it would show a great deal of heart and soul for the city of Simi to have it here," said Evans, 62.

All who spoke agreed that the memorial should be at the Simi train station, including Moorpark resident Kipp Landis, 42, who was riding in the first car of Metrolink 111 and sustained major injuries.

"I think Simi is the place to have it, there's no question," said Landis, his arm still wrapped in a cast. "Simi was the next stop and it's the logical place."

Still, Sedell said the city is open to having two different memorials—one at the crash site and one in Simi—if that is what residents feel is best.

"I could see something in L.A. that encompasses all the victims, but I think it is important that we do something here locally," said Colleen Janssen, who works for the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District.

Lavonne Kendall, a local landscape designer, said a significant marker should be at the actual crash site, even if it's not accessible for residents to visit.

For the Simi memorial, the group seemed in favor of the idea of a memorial garden that would feature plaques, benches and a memorial walkway.

While some had simpler monuments in mind, others like Kendall envision a larger scale memorial.

"I was thinking of something grander, more beautiful, using granite," she said. "With water and trees and flowers and a place where people can actually come and meditate regarding their loved ones."

Matt Spacey, 33—whose father, Roger, 60, died in the crash— said he would like to see personalized spaces that family and friends of the victims can visit.

"I would like to have individual plaques that you could set flowers on and I love the idea of a walkway and a garden," Spacey said. "I think that would be a great thing."

Landis said he would also like to see something on the station's platform, either a pillar or a plaque, saying what happened and perhaps providing direction to the large memorial garden.

But some were unsure about including something on the platform, noting that it might stir up bad feelings or make riders uncomfortable about boarding the train.

The group also expressed some concern over how victims' families, crash survivors and even visitors to the community would view a memorial in general.

"My concern is that it doesn't get a cemetery feel to it and creep out the people who do go there to use the train," Janssen said.

To avoid the cemetery-feel, she suggested planting magnolia trees for each of the Simi victims.

Maggie Urpin, however, stressed the importance of honoring all that were affected by the tragedy, not just those from Simi.

Urpin has been working with the Simi Valley Community Foundation to help raise money for victims' families and survivors of the crash.

"I want to really make sure that we know that it was not only the people that died that were affected," the 59-year-old said. "There are a lot of families in this city that are still dealing with all of these things."

Cost was not a factor in the discussion, and Sedell said the city is not worried about money during this phase of the planning process.

While funding will eventually come into play, Sedell said the primary goal of Wednesday's workshop and subsequent meetings is to facilitate ideas and eventually take a plan back to the City Council.

Idealistically, the city and those who attended the meeting would like to see the memorial dedicated on the first anniversary of the crash.

For more information on the Metrolink memorial planning and future workshops, contact Laura Behjan, assistant city manager, at (805) 583-6701.