The Crossroads (72 & Dodge)

[GetUrban]

That “hovenring” would be fantastic. It would take some other improvements with the sidewalks and trail connections to justify it, but I would be all for it to do something significant of that caliber at 72nd & Dodge.

[Busguy2010]

That “hovenring” would be fantastic. It would take some other improvements with the sidewalks and trail connections to justify it, but I would be all for it to do something significant of that caliber at 72nd & Dodge.

Come to think of it, it really wouldn't take all that much to extend all the trails to 72nd & Dodge.

Elmwood Park trail 62nd & Dodge to 72nd Dodge

Keystone trail 77th & Dodge to 72nd & Dodge

Keystone Trail From 72nd & Pacific to 72nd & Dodge

All it would really take is widening the sidewalks to 6+ feet and boom, you have something you can call a trail.

I'm actually really in love with this idea now. And it doesn't even have to be pretty. Could just have one support on each corner and one support in each median.



Would be a spectacular asset to the city.

[riceweb]

+1 to this idea. I've used one in Shanghai, they're immensely useful for pedestrians. It would also extend the urbanization SE from Crossroads, and then maybe we won't have new carwashes developed at our busiest intersection lol.

[nebport5]

That “hovenring” would be fantastic. It would take some other improvements with the sidewalks and trail connections to justify it, but I would be all for it to do something significant of that caliber at 72nd & Dodge.

Come to think of it, it really wouldn't take all that much to extend all the trails to 72nd & Dodge.

Elmwood Park trail 62nd & Dodge to 72nd Dodge

Keystone trail 77th & Dodge to 72nd & Dodge

Keystone Trail From 72nd & Pacific to 72nd & Dodge

All it would really take is widening the sidewalks to 6+ feet and boom, you have something you can call a trail.

I'm actually really in love with this idea now. And it doesn't even have to be pretty. Could just have one support on each corner and one support in each median.



Would be a spectacular asset to the city.

Yes, it would take some other improvements too. At least on the Crossroads side with 10ft sidewalks there'd be room for pedestrians and a bike lane.

Connecting the trails, yes! I can't recall the proposed routes for extended bike trails but it would be nice if there was a way to link Keystone to the Harney St bikeway(if it finally becomes a reality).

[iamjacobm]

Final plat here.

https://planning.cityofomaha.org/images ... ber/12.pdf

[ita]

Final plat here.

https://planning.cityofomaha.org/images ... ber/12.pdf

I still have my misgivings about this project, but some things I that are welcome changes in the final plat: they are more than doubling (+270) the non-senior living residential units to the project, Lot 16 includes buildings that are up against Dodge versus the parking lot that was there, and Lot 1 and 2 being a single building but incorporating both senior and non-senior residential. It looks like the height of the office and multifamily is still 8-10 stories, so that's nice. What's up with Lot 3 though, there is no designated use? Am I missing something?

[skinzfan23]

Any timeline on this project?

[bldgengineer2015]

Final plat here.

https://planning.cityofomaha.org/images ... ber/12.pdf

I still have my misgivings about this project, but some things I that are welcome changes in the final plat: they are more than doubling (+270) the non-senior living residential units to the project, Lot 16 includes buildings that are up against Dodge versus the parking lot that was there, and Lot 1 and 2 being a single building but incorporating both senior and non-senior residential. It looks like the height of the office and multifamily is still 8-10 stories, so that's nice. What's up with Lot 3 though, there is no designated use? Am I missing something?

It looks like Lot 3 is being taken out of the mixed use development plan and will be zoned General Commercial.

[Garrett]

Yeah it’s good to see this replatting with more stuff on dodge. I take it out lot B is going to be the central plaza?

[ita]

Final plat here.

https://planning.cityofomaha.org/images ... ber/12.pdf

I still have my misgivings about this project, but some things I that are welcome changes in the final plat: they are more than doubling (+270) the non-senior living residential units to the project, Lot 16 includes buildings that are up against Dodge versus the parking lot that was there, and Lot 1 and 2 being a single building but incorporating both senior and non-senior residential. It looks like the height of the office and multifamily is still 8-10 stories, so that's nice. What's up with Lot 3 though, there is no designated use? Am I missing something?

It looks like Lot 3 is being taken out of the mixed use development plan and will be zoned General Commercial.

Hmm, so freestanding big box retailer maybe? I guess at least it's hidden from Dodge. Is it big enough for Ikea or Fleet Farm?

[stormchaser]

Final plat here.

https://planning.cityofomaha.org/images ... ber/12.pdf

I still have my misgivings about this project, but some things I that are welcome changes in the final plat: they are more than doubling (+270) the non-senior living residential units to the project, Lot 16 includes buildings that are up against Dodge versus the parking lot that was there, and Lot 1 and 2 being a single building but incorporating both senior and non-senior residential. It looks like the height of the office and multifamily is still 8-10 stories, so that's nice. What's up with Lot 3 though, there is no designated use? Am I missing something?

It looks like Lot 3 is being taken out of the mixed use development plan and will be zoned General Commercial.

Hmm, so freestanding big box retailer maybe? I guess at least it's hidden from Dodge. Is it big enough for Ikea or Fleet Farm?

Technically it would be large enough for the new "small format" IKEA stores that they are building - at least one they opened recently in Queens is 115,000 feet (not sure if it's more than 1 floor like a traditional IKEA - I'd assume so). That lot is ~145,000 square feet though so assuming it was 2 floors, then it would probably be enough space. I'd be shocked if Fleet Farm built there though even if it was enough space. I'd expect them to build somewhere closer to the edge of the city...

[ita]

I think it was in the call in show, but Jorge revisited something he said about the parking garage. The developers are thinking about possibly building on top of the garage some kind of residential, apartments or condos. I really hope they do this and that starts a trend of building on existing parking garages in the City.

[Brad]

I think it was in the call in show, but Jorge revisited something he said about the parking garage. The developers are thinking about possibly building on top of the garage some kind of residential, apartments or condos. I really hope they do this and that starts a trend of building on existing parking garages in the City.

Yes, it was on the last call in show,

It seems like it was later in the show if I remember correctly.

[BIGO88]

Fly over video showing lots of retail.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_i4t79--iU

[Brad]

Ummmm.....

J Coco hooking back up with the Flatiron people and opening at the roads?

flatiron.PNG

[ita]

Wow, thanks for the video link. It looks more interesting, but yeah, that's a lot of retail. It looks like a lot more than what was previously shown. Also, a lot of patio/balconies and open skywalks. Last thing, is it just me or are the office and hotel buildings significantly shorter than prior renderings? That's not a huge deal, except the developers were boasting that the buildings would be taller than what we are seeing here. Anyway, it seems like the plans keep evolving, so who knows what this will ultimately look like.

[Taco]

Man I hate to be negative on here because I really am glad something is happening here, but I don't see much special to be excited about. It feels like the least ambitious design we've seen for this area and I agree with ita and think they are already walking back the sizing. The retail focus is confusing as well since there's already a ton of retail in the area and everyone knows the national trends. Do they plan to steal successful places from nearby developments? Also, so much of their space is reserved for surface parking. I guess this makes me appreciate what is happening downtown, Aksarben, and at Millwork more because I feel more of a forward-thinking vision.

[riceweb]

Man I hate to be negative on here because I really am glad something is happening here, but I don't see much special to be excited about. It feels like the least ambitious design we've seen for this area and I agree with ita and think they are already walking back the sizing. The retail focus is confusing as well since there's already a ton of retail in the area and everyone knows the national trends. Do they plan to steal successful places from nearby developments? Also, so much of their space is reserved for surface parking. I guess this makes me appreciate what is happening downtown, Aksarben, and at Millwork more because I feel more of a forward-thinking vision.

Agreed. It's odd that at 72nd and Dodge we'd need so much surface parking. Isn't Aksarben Village evidence that it's not needed? Wouldn't 3,000 extra apartments be a better use of the space and help drive traffic to all the retail they're adding?

[daveoma]

Man I hate to be negative on here because I really am glad something is happening here, but I don't see much special to be excited about. It feels like the least ambitious design we've seen for this area and I agree with ita and think they are already walking back the sizing. The retail focus is confusing as well since there's already a ton of retail in the area and everyone knows the national trends. Do they plan to steal successful places from nearby developments? Also, so much of their space is reserved for surface parking. I guess this makes me appreciate what is happening downtown, Aksarben, and at Millwork more because I feel more of a forward-thinking vision.

Agreed. It's odd that at 72nd and Dodge we'd need so much surface parking. Isn't Aksarben Village evidence that it's not needed? Wouldn't 3,000 extra apartments be a better use of the space and help drive traffic to all the retail they're adding?

I agree 100%. I'll take apartments over surface lots any day. I wonder if part of the persuasion to obtain TIF for these types of developments is to tell the city that there'll be a lot of commercial space in which the city can obtain sales tax revenue.

[PotatoeEatsFish]

Man I hate to be negative on here because I really am glad something is happening here, but I don't see much special to be excited about. It feels like the least ambitious design we've seen for this area and I agree with ita and think they are already walking back the sizing. The retail focus is confusing as well since there's already a ton of retail in the area and everyone knows the national trends. Do they plan to steal successful places from nearby developments? Also, so much of their space is reserved for surface parking. I guess this makes me appreciate what is happening downtown, Aksarben, and at Millwork more because I feel more of a forward-thinking vision.

I'll just be happy if we ever see something even get built here it's been so many years of back and forth its ridiculous.

[Busguy2010]

I think its positive simply that the mall is gone, and they are close to a clean slate as of today. That in itself was a giant hurdle. I'd be happy with it as the most recent look at the plan.

[GrowUpFrances]

Hopefully this is a hint that a West Elm will be a part of this development!

[OmahaOmaha]

Fly over video showing lots of retail.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_i4t79--iU

I like how it shows a ton of people hanging around, but there’s empty parking spaces all over the place. They sure can make it look like a vibrant place with all those people. In reality, just imagine how dead the place will look in the dead of winter or on the hot summer days.

I think the overall design is just fine. I swear some of you guys complain about everything and nothing makes you happy. The architecture is too uninspiring, there’s too much surface parking lots, the offices are too short, blah, blah, blah.
If they built more parking garages, you’d complain that they didn’t make them look pretty enough. If the development had really cool architecture, you’d complain that it doesn’t fit in with the surrounding area. If they built taller office buildings, you’d complain that they are drawing people away from office space downtown.

[NEDodger]

I think the overall design is just fine. I swear some of you guys complain about everything and nothing makes you happy. The architecture is too uninspiring, there’s too much surface parking lots, the offices are too short, blah, blah, blah.
If they built more parking garages, you’d complain that they didn’t make them look pretty enough. If the development had really cool architecture, you’d complain that it doesn’t fit in with the surrounding area. If they built taller office buildings, you’d complain that they are drawing people away from office space downtown.

Hammer, meet head of nail!

[riceweb]

Criticism is fair when it takes years and years and years to get these things going. Once they're in place, they're basically permanent.

[iamjacobm]

These are the same as the images in the video posted above, just thought they may be a little more high res than had been posted yet.

[Cermak]

Still not sold on this, another lifestyle center is all it looks like to me. The key will be if they can get some new to market retail, like REI, West Elm or Nordstrom Rack. That will give some a reason to go there. Hopefully they can find a place to put a few Pickleball courts in .

[Busguy2010]

Still not sold on this, another lifestyle center is all it looks like to me. The key will be if they can get some new to market retail, like REI, West Elm or Nordstrom Rack. That will give some a reason to go there. Hopefully they can find a place to put a few Pickleball courts in .

I don't know... I know the initial recreation was supposed to be a pseudo mall, more akin to Shadow Lake than anything, but over the years, I think the focus changed more to an Aksarben Village type development, all for the better. I definitely don't think retail is the focus of this development.

[Greg S]

Still not sold on this, another lifestyle center is all it looks like to me. The key will be if they can get some new to market retail, like REI, West Elm or Nordstrom Rack. That will give some a reason to go there. Hopefully they can find a place to put a few Pickleball courts in .

I don't know... I know the initial recreation was supposed to be a pseudo mall, more akin to Shadow Lake than anything, but over the years, I think the focus changed more to an Aksarben Village type development, all for the better. I definitely don't think retail is the focus of this development.

Yeah I agree, this definitely doesn't look as much like Shadow Lake or Village Pointe as it does Ak Sar Ben Village.

Greg

[PotatoeEatsFish]

I actually prefer this to Aksarben, much more walkable and unique. It almost has a Denver feel to it, I also like the rooftop seating areas.

[Garrett]

I actually prefer this to Aksarben, much more walkable and unique. It almost has a Denver feel to it, I also like the rooftop seating areas.

Ehhhhhh I definitely wouldn't go that far. Aksarben as a UNO campus and most of the parking is in garages, whereas this has some pretty major lots right on Dodge.

[ita]

I actually prefer this to Aksarben, much more walkable and unique. It almost has a Denver feel to it, I also like the rooftop seating areas.

Ehhhhhh I definitely wouldn't go that far. Aksarben as a UNO campus and most of the parking is in garages, whereas this has some pretty major lots right on Dodge.

Agreed. I guess Aksarben doesn't really have an extensive pedestrian mall or courtyard like the Crossroads concept, but lets see what Krejci/Lockwood ends up doing with the development before we start comparing the two.

[Brad]

I guess Aksarben doesn't really have an extensive pedestrian mall or courtyard like the Crossroads concept

I thought it was going to around the Movie theater, the south side of Backlot, and over towards Pauli's but it never really ended up that way.

[nebport5]

I actually prefer this to Aksarben, much more walkable and unique. It almost has a Denver feel to it, I also like the rooftop seating areas.

Ehhhhhh I definitely wouldn't go that far. Aksarben as a UNO campus and most of the parking is in garages, whereas this has some pretty major lots right on Dodge.

From an aesthetic design perspective the amount of surface lot doesn't give off a premiere shopping destination vibe. I'm not sure how many committed tenants they have at this point so It's possible designs could yet morph but the current renderings give off more of Village Pointe and Regency had a baby.

I actually prefer this to Aksarben, much more walkable and unique. It almost has a Denver feel to it, I also like the rooftop seating areas.

The nightmare that is Cherry Creek? I find Denver retail/shopping generally mediocre.

[TreeKiid]

With the area’s incoming REI now committed to Nebraska Crossing, I would be interested in what other people think we could get as far as retailers here at Crossroads. Jeff from grow Omaha spoke about Nebraska Crossing being the place retailers are interested in if they have one store coming to the market and I have to agree, but they are also running out of space fast. I could definitely see this area trying to go for a little higher end only store in the state concept and compete with Regency Court and Village Pointe.

Retailers I could see potentially going here are:
West Elm
Nordstrom Rack
Free People (bohemian inspired women’s clothing)
Crate and Barrel or CB2
Arhaus (furniture)
Orvis (outdoor apparel)
Saks 5th Ave. (if Tulsa can have one)
Madewell (men’s and women’s retailer specializes in denim)
Restoration Hardware
Soma
Rally House
Filson (also outdoor apparel)
Hammer Made (men’s clothing)
Second Urban Outfitters
Second Apple store (if we are big enough to qualify)

I’m also not disillusioned to the fact that some of these are long shots.

[Greg S]

I know many would not be that excited but I would love to see Rally House enter this market. We make sure to go to one on almost every trip to KC. We stay downtown mostly and the one at Power and Light is a great downtown retailer for KC.

Greg

[djc311]

Have they released names of any committed retailers for the Crossroads site yet?

[TreeKiid]

I know many would not be that excited but I would love to see Rally House enter this market. We make sure to go to one on almost every trip to KC. We stay downtown mostly and the one at Power and Light is a great downtown retailer for KC.

Greg

Same!

Have they released names of any committed retailers for the Crossroads site yet?

None that I know of yet

[PWL73316]

I did not know that there is already a Rally House in Des Moines.

Omaha has definitely outgrown Lawlors - nothing against Lawlors in particular. Would be great to have a larger sports-branding focused retailer.

[Erik]

I am generally delighted with the concept.

Over the years, I've learned that initial concepts are rarely ever implemented. Not just here in Omaha. Developers tend to start with a homerun design to generate excitement, then taper back a bit.

This design is very appealing aesthetically and conceptually. I see "bland" used a lot, but my idea of bland is considerably different. I am not sure how our opinions have reached this point. I feel like this development looks like an upgrade to Village Point.

Then again, that's just how I see it.

I wouldn't get too bent on the ability for cars to drive in. It still has complete walkability to it, just with the ability for none locals to come in. Very few places in the world have the luxury of shutting out cars.