Stothert's State of City speech discusses police recruitment, Omaha's big projects

In her 10th State of the City address, Mayor Jean Stothert highlighted the needs of a changing Omaha.

Massive redevelopment projects, a growing population and urgent public safety initiatives dominated the mayor’s speech Tuesday.

“Cities never stand still. They are either growing and moving forward, or they are declining and falling behind,” Stothert said. “I am proud to report that Omaha, now the country’s 39th largest city, is indeed growing and moving forward.”

That growth is marked with a renewed urgency to increase development and density within Omaha’s urban core — a goal the city and private developers took on in several ways last year.

In the works are new venues for education, entertainment and recreation. And a planned streetcar system to tie them all together, Stothert said.

Her list included an array of downtown projects: the newly renovated Riverfront Parks, the riverfront Kiewit Luminarium science museum, concert venue Steelhouse Omaha and the Millwork District in north downtown.

Mutual of Omaha also broke ground on its downtown skyscraper earlier this year. The company’s new corporate headquarters is being built on a site just west of the Gene Leahy Mall that was formerly occupied by the W. Dale Clark Library.

The library was demolished to make way for the tower. Through a redevelopment agreement between the city and Mutual, the streetcar project and Mutual skyscraper are contractually tied together.

“The skyline-changing, city-changing (Mutual) project is part of our promising future for the urban core as a center for business and commerce, urban living, entertainment, learning and recreation,” Stothert said.

Long a priority for the mayor, public safety issues were prominent in Stothert’s speech.

The Omaha Police Department currently has 798 sworn, full-time police officers among its ranks — 108 short of the 906 officers authorized in the city budget. That’s 88% of its total authorized strength.

The department has stumbled to a staffing level that is as small as it was seven years ago.

“Recruiting for police officers is difficult right now,” Stothert said. “The number of applicants are significantly down compared to past years. It’s a concerning trend in law enforcement across the country.”

To attract more qualified recruits, the city will begin negotiations with the Omaha Police Officers Association to raise officer salaries, Stothert said.

She highlighted other safety priorities for the year, including:

An expansion of the city’s mental health co-responder program and restorative justice initiative.

Plans for a new police and fire headquarters.

A new fire station in northwest Omaha.

Plans to develop a Vision Zero plan with the goal of greatly reducing or ending traffic-related deaths.

And a new plan for the replacement of fleet and emergency fire vehicles.

At the end of April, seven new medic units will be in service, Stothert said.

Other highlights from Stothert’s speech:

Street improvements

In 2020, Omaha voters approved $200 million bond issue for street improvement projects.

This year, there are 80 new projects on the list for street resurfacing and repair, concrete reconstruction and brick street restoration, Stothert said.

“With careful spending, skilled management of our budget, paying off bonds early and refinancing bonds, we have still not implemented the voter-approved property tax increase to pay the debt on the street bonds,” Stothert said.

New central and downtown library

Local nonprofit fundraising group Heritage Omaha is closing in on its fundraising goal to build a new $150 million public library at 72nd and Dodge, Stothert said.

The city has pledged to contribute $20 million to the project.

Upon completion, the city will take ownership of the library and Do Space, a tech library previously in that location, will continue to be integrated into the Omaha Public Library system.

Completion of that project is still a few years away, but the grand opening of the city’s new downtown library branch at 1401 Jones St. is expected in May.

Some Omaha residents have criticized the process as one that lacks transparency and prioritizes corporate interests over public spaces.

Supporters of the project point to a need for redevelopment and job growth in the city’s urban core, as well as the need for a modernized downtown library.

“There is often public discourse when development threatens history,” Stothert said. “There is a place for both development and preservation in our city.”

Pandemic recovery

March marked the third anniversary of a communitywide shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In May, the Biden administration will lift COVID-related national and public health emergencies.

“One sign that the pandemic is behind us,” Stothert said.

Millions of dollars in federal assistance funds have been disbursed locally. More than 15,000 households in 33 Omaha ZIP codes have benefited from the Emergency Rental Assistance Program, with almost $86 million disbursed for rent payments, Stothert said.

The city also received $112 million through the federal American Rescue Plan Act.

Much of that money has been disbursed or bookmarked for affordable housing, the hotel and tourism industry, public parks, public safety and business improvement districts.