Photos of the newly opened Hilton and National Parks bldg.

Downtown, Midtown, and all parts east of 72nd.

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StreetsOfOmaha
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Photos of the newly opened Hilton and National Parks bldg.

Post by StreetsOfOmaha »

I had to go see the new Hilton on it's first day in business. I parked at L&C and walked over the MLK bridge to get to the Hilton. But first I snapped some photos of the National Parks building. The inside of the Hilton was gorgeous, and very high tech. Each meeting room had it's own digital screen by the enterance. The decor is fabulous, with tons of original art. I was actually totally surprised by the art that they had in there...it's REAL art! In fact, I could have just as easily seen the paintings at the Bemis Center, or in a contemporary exhibit at Joslyn. And the custom stained glass light fixtures are absolutely beautiful.

Everyone should go down there and check it out yourself, but here are some photos until then.

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"The right to have access to every building in the city by private motorcar in an age when everyone possesses such a vehicle is actually the right to destroy the city."
Lewis Mumford, The Highway and the City, 1963
eomaha
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Post by eomaha »

Nice! Thanks for sharing those Aaron.

But I'm curious... what happened between crossing the street and the photos in the lounge? :) It suddenly got dark! Check one of the rooms with a friend?? :twisted:
AZCorey
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Post by AZCorey »

Great pictures....thanks for posting them! I'm very impressed.....

The UP Center should be getting close to be done, too, huh??
eomaha
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Post by eomaha »

If you look at the webcam at night... you can see about 2/3rd of the floors have been finished. The exterior is mostly completely... save sections occupied by exterior elevators.

http://www.eomaha.com/gallery/develop/5/
StreetsOfOmaha
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Post by StreetsOfOmaha »

Thanks, guys.

Yeah, Jeff, I knew someone would notice that. Once I got in the lobby and walked around a little bit, I took a seat in the lounge and talked to a friend on the phone for about an hour. Plus, I wanted to wait until it was dark outside anyway to capture the "warmth" of the lobby.
"The right to have access to every building in the city by private motorcar in an age when everyone possesses such a vehicle is actually the right to destroy the city."
Lewis Mumford, The Highway and the City, 1963
AZCorey
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Post by AZCorey »

What is the approx. number of hotel rooms in downtown Omaha now?? And, has the Doubletree a.k.a. 'The Red Lion' ever renovated?? They hadn't when I still lived there....and boy did they need it then...I would think with the beautiful competition of the new Hilton, the Embassy Suites, the Sheraton, Hilton Garden....they would have to renovate to compete....I remember when that hotel was THE place to stay...in fact, it was a Hilton many, many moons ago.....!

So many hotels have gone up since I left I wondered if we were now more 'proportionate' than we used to be. Are there any other hotels in the works?? I can't imagine downtown could handle many more now.....
eomaha
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Post by eomaha »

Hilton-450
Doubletree-400
Embassy Suites-250
Courtyard by Marriot-181
Hilton Garden Inn-178
Ramada Airport-150
Sheraton-145
Wingate Airport-120
Sleep Inn-100
Super 8 Airport-100
Redick-89
----------------------------
2,163 rooms

The Double Tree was renovated relatively recently (and yes... it originally was the Hilton).
edsas
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Post by edsas »

Does the Hilton have any exterior lighting to compliment Qwest?
StreetsOfOmaha
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Post by StreetsOfOmaha »

I hope so, edsas. That would really add to the building's presence at night.

Speaking of hotels, I believe Gallup plans for a couple up on their land...probably some smaller business/extended stay type facilities.
"The right to have access to every building in the city by private motorcar in an age when everyone possesses such a vehicle is actually the right to destroy the city."
Lewis Mumford, The Highway and the City, 1963
SychoBC
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Post by SychoBC »

It looks really nice, it finally being finished really adds to the area.
almighty_tuna
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Post by almighty_tuna »

As far as I know, Gallup's full buildout includes a couple office buildings not connected to the main building and the hotel. Concerning the hotel, I believe it will not be publicly available, used only for clients. The operation of it will not be done by Gallup and likely be contracted out. This won't happen for a while though. Since I work there I'll speak up if something develops (no pun intended).

If the powers that be are smart about it though, they will develop more meeting and convention-style meeting space in the future hotel. The "Great Room" in our DC office, located in the Old Masonic Building section of the office, is used for a lot of official non-Gallup functions, like the upcoming Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund event. Other events like the Positive Psychology Summit, which is Gallup sponsored in DC, feature nobel prize winners, etc and I'd like to see more of that kind of thing come to Omaha with that hotel. It would lend an added sense of distinction and knowledge to the area and would be a boon to the Old Market if the streetcar idea goes through.

-Adam
futrecndvlpr
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Post by futrecndvlpr »

Correct me if I am wrong, but didn't Gallup say awhile back that they would probably not be building the hotel(s) on their property. I think they said that there were already enought hotels in DT to meet their needs.
almighty_tuna
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Post by almighty_tuna »

The full buildout plans we were shown included a smaller hotel, but it won't happen for quite a while. I can ask and get an "official" answer.
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