Getting on board to boost growth

Banker John Krajicek thinks retail parking is key to propelling economic growth in south Omaha.

Matt Hazen of Alegent Health says the area's housing stock could use some sprucing up.

Several others who toured an eight-square-mile study area Wednesday left with their own enhancement ideas: better public transit; projects that capitalize on ethnic diversity; creative use of parkland; new and different jobs.

Sparking discussion on ways to bring business investment to what old-timers recall as “the magic city” was the goal of the bus ride organized by the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

The chamber's focus on south Omaha follows similar development efforts in other regions of the city such as midtown, north downtown and north Omaha.

“Begin a dialogue,” Douglas Bisson of HDR Engineering told the group of about two dozen people cruising the historic 24th Street commercial district. “Are there opportunities that we need to be looking at?”

The tour that continued along main roads and through parks and neighborhoods was considered the kickoff of the public portion of the South Omaha Development Project, said Jim Grotrian, vice president of the chamber.

Stops included the new Kroc Center, the Henry Doorly Zoo and a grocery store. Riders included donors to the project and community and business leaders on the steering committee.

Still ahead are neighborhood input meetings and a marketing analysis. HDR, with guidance from the project's steering committee, is to produce the final implementation plan.

Rebecca Valdez of the Latino Center of the Midlands emphasized that the area contains much history, culture and entrepreneurial spirit already. She is hoping for the creation of a “grand plan.”

For example, she asked: Will there be a strategy to give discounts to south Omaha stores if you show a zoo stub, or vice versa?

“Where is the tie-in?” asked Valdez. “How are we all going to work together so that everybody is on the same page for South O?”

So far, about $670,000 has been raised for the study phase, said Grotrian. The goal is another $100,000 to pay for a still-to-be-hired director who will help implement recommendations. That amount would pay the directors' salary for at least two years.

Additional investors would be needed to bring details of the plan to life.

Boundaries of the South Omaha Development Project closely resemble the historical South Omaha city limits when the “magic city” was incorporated into Omaha in 1915. (The project area was enlarged to add the Lauritzen Gardens, Henry Doorly Zoo and Deer Park neighborhood.)

Organizers of the tour said that about 35,000 people live within the project area boundaries. Close to half identify themselves as Hispanic or Latino. About 1,000 businesses are within the study area.

Krajicek said he grew up in south Omaha and works there, so has a historical perspective he'd like to provide in the long-range plan. South Omaha is busy, he said, and needs parking along retail districts and for the new South High football and soccer complex.

“This community is not like any other part of the city,” he said. “I want it to survive, and it will.”

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