Omaha Children's Museum (750 Douglas St)

[Brad]

The Children's Museum has been without a CEO for about a year now. There are several open senior roles, as nobody wants to take a job not knowing who their boss will be...

Any idea why the CEO roll has been open so long now? Or is this typical?

[Ben]

The Children's Museum has been without a CEO for about a year now. There are several open senior roles, as nobody wants to take a job not knowing who their boss will be...

Any idea why the CEO roll has been open so long now? Or is this typical?

Not at all typical. This should be one of the more coveted non-profit jobs in the city.... That being said, there's only a small pool of local non-profit leaders that would be capable of managing an institution of this size, and we all know that its not super easy to recruit outsiders to Omaha (for any job, non-profit or commercial).

Clearly they have some concerns that need to be ironed out (not sure exact details) before philanthropists have enough confidence to write them a big check. I would assume they need to get fully staffed up, then set strategic alignment between staff, board and their donor base....

In addition, its a bit like the house market. The longer something sits open/on the market, it develops a stigma of being "tainted", whether or not it should be.

[OracleOfOmaha]

The Children's Museum has been without a CEO for about a year now. There are several open senior roles, as nobody wants to take a job not knowing who their boss will be...

Any idea why the CEO roll has been open so long now? Or is this typical?

Not at all typical. This should be one of the more coveted non-profit jobs in the city.... That being said, there's only a small pool of local non-profit leaders that would be capable of managing an institution of this size, and we all know that its not super easy to recruit outsiders to Omaha (for any job, non-profit or commercial).

Clearly they have some concerns that need to be ironed out (not sure exact details) before philanthropists have enough confidence to write them a big check. I would assume they need to get fully staffed up, then set strategic alignment between staff, board and their donor base....

In addition, its a bit like the house market. The longer something sits open/on the market, it develops a stigma of being "tainted", whether or not it should be.

EDIT: I guess the news of them "pausing" their new build relocation would throw a wrench in any hiring plans!

My .02

Executive level recruiting taking months is standard. Then the back and forth between the board on candidate selection. Approve a few offer worthy candidates to conduct further interviews, board meetings, site visits, etc. And if that phase falls through, the process can start over.

I'm assuming the board is being very selective to get the hire right, with such a pivotal moment opening a new space, a 'good enough' hire is not good enough for them. They want a candidate with not only experience, but vision.

[WBR_Tom]

Some "yikes" details here.

NuStyle was blindsided by the announcement, and whether The Beam moves forward or not seems very much up in the air. A note that the city will reimburse them for $4.34m already spent in infrastructure work seems to indicate that it's dead too, though. So does this quote:

“We do hope to find a way to make The Beam building work with the City,” Heistand wrote, “but if it doesn’t work out, we are good with that as well.”

City was blindsided by it too and commented that they don't know what OCM's plan will end up being.

Project was put on hold because of a fundraising shortfall, but Heritage declined comment. Not exactly a ringing endorsement for any future role they might have if the project resurfaces.

https://nebraskapublicmedia.org/en/news ... t-project/

So maybe not time to move this thread to "Projects Never Built"... but then again, maybe it is.

[Doctor Fate]

Some "yikes" details here.

NuStyle was blindsided by the announcement, and whether The Beam moves forward or not seems very much up in the air. A note that the city will reimburse them for $4.34m already spent in infrastructure work seems to indicate that it's dead too, though. So does this quote:

“We do hope to find a way to make The Beam building work with the City,” Heistand wrote, “but if it doesn’t work out, we are good with that as well.”

City was blindsided by it too and commented that they don't know what OCM's plan will end up being.

Project was put on hold because of a fundraising shortfall, but Heritage declined comment. Not exactly a ringing endorsement for any future role they might have if the project resurfaces.

https://nebraskapublicmedia.org/en/news ... t-project/

So maybe not time to move this thread to "Projects Never Built"... but then again, maybe it is.

Wow, so the Children's Museum falling through could create a domino affect of developments not happening. If the Beam also stalls out I wonder if that could impact the indoor market and rumored housing too?

[Garrett]

Some "yikes" details here.

NuStyle was blindsided by the announcement, and whether The Beam moves forward or not seems very much up in the air. A note that the city will reimburse them for $4.34m already spent in infrastructure work seems to indicate that it's dead too, though. So does this quote:

“We do hope to find a way to make The Beam building work with the City,” Heistand wrote, “but if it doesn’t work out, we are good with that as well.”

City was blindsided by it too and commented that they don't know what OCM's plan will end up being.

Project was put on hold because of a fundraising shortfall, but Heritage declined comment. Not exactly a ringing endorsement for any future role they might have if the project resurfaces.

https://nebraskapublicmedia.org/en/news ... t-project/

So maybe not time to move this thread to "Projects Never Built"... but then again, maybe it is.

Wow, so the Children's Museum falling through could create a domino affect of developments not happening. If the Beam also stalls out I wonder if that could impact the indoor market and rumored housing too?

I think the market would be fine since that's a separate development on the other side of the park. That said, given that Heritage is involved with that as well, I could see issues if the fundraising well is currently dry in general.

[Doctor Fate]

Some "yikes" details here.

NuStyle was blindsided by the announcement, and whether The Beam moves forward or not seems very much up in the air. A note that the city will reimburse them for $4.34m already spent in infrastructure work seems to indicate that it's dead too, though. So does this quote:

“We do hope to find a way to make The Beam building work with the City,” Heistand wrote, “but if it doesn’t work out, we are good with that as well.”

City was blindsided by it too and commented that they don't know what OCM's plan will end up being.

Project was put on hold because of a fundraising shortfall, but Heritage declined comment. Not exactly a ringing endorsement for any future role they might have if the project resurfaces.

https://nebraskapublicmedia.org/en/news ... t-project/

So maybe not time to move this thread to "Projects Never Built"... but then again, maybe it is.

Wow, so the Children's Museum falling through could create a domino affect of developments not happening. If the Beam also stalls out I wonder if that could impact the indoor market and rumored housing too?

I think the market would be fine since that's a separate development on the other side of the park. That said, given that Heritage is involved with that as well, I could see issues if the fundraising well is currently dry in general.

I could see the market being fine but I was also thinking of how losing hundreds of potential patron right across the street as well as the two garages could impact its feasibility or outlook.

[nativeomahan]

We all are so accustomed to civic betterment projects being announced then built without delay. The three downtown parks, Luminarium, Holland Center and Tenaska Center all come to mind. This project seemed to be on the fast track as well. I guess this stands as a wake up call that donation money doesn’t grow on trees.

[skinzfan23]

That’s very true, most cities in the country don’t have the philanthropic support or even close to what Omaha has.

I thought the Peter Kiewit foundation had $500 million that they were trying to wind down.

[GenX]

I know it’s “not quite that easy”, but couldn’t NuStyle and other parties/donors somehow finance the construction of the new museum to keep the project alive? It’s a perfect location, and the Beam is a perfect companion project.

On a separate but related note, the “we’re okay with that, too” remark sounds an awful lot to me like a graceful bow out from this particular project, at least as originally conceived.

[GenX]

That’s very true, most cities in the country don’t have the philanthropic support or even close to what Omaha has.

I thought the Peter Kiewit foundation had $500 million that they were trying to wind down.

There is an absolutely ridiculous amount of money in this town and the surrounding areas, in a good way, and many are philanthropists.

[jjjjhskr]

I tend to think this is just a delay while they are still looking for an executive director. They probably want the new person involved in planning. I may be wrong.

[nebport5]

I tend to think this is just a delay while they are still looking for an executive director. They probably want the new person involved in planning. I may be wrong.

I agree. It’s put the horse before the cart. I doubt it was because money couldn’t be raised but rather it’s easier to commit sizable donations to a stable led organization.

[Renovator2559]

I feel like the reason this happened, is that this mayor Ewin, hasnt built sufficient trust from public donors to this mayor Ewing. Mayor Jean stothert built plenty of trust with private donors, local corps and donations were instant.

The parade float with mayor Ewing had a big sign, he was waving his arms. Most locals were north Omaha. Crickets as soon as he passed by.
Mayor Jean Stothert was different, she had that people charm and I will remember how she started her visions projects on her first month. I miss Mayor Jean Stothert.

I was disappointed with mayor Ewin, not showing up in Grow Omaha, which many of were waiting for breadcrumbs.

The interview was phone based and even that was dry robotic, no personality and just a rehash of campaign promises.
I heard no vision, side stepping Growth.

Though his aggressive push housing will build trust in that area and his 8% increase of infra funding.

[ita]

I think with the Beam apparently moving forward, the OCM relocation may still be moving forward, just not right now. The projects were interconnected as the City also committed a large amount of parking to support both. When Heistand gave a comment regarding the Beam in connection to the OCM pause his comment was not reassuring at all that he would move forward with their part. It just seems to me that with NuStyle moving forward, there may have been some reassurance that the OCM project is not completely dead and it really is just a pause while they find their leadership or whatever is the reason behind it. What do you all think?

[nebport5]

I think with the Beam apparently moving forward, the OCM relocation may still be moving forward, just not right now. The projects were interconnected as the City also committed a large amount of parking to support both. When Heistand gave a comment regarding the Beam in connection to the OCM pause his comment was not reassuring at all that he would move forward with their part. It just seems to me that with NuStyle moving forward, there may have been some reassurance that the OCM project is not completely dead and it really is just a pause while they find their leadership or whatever is the reason behind it. What do you all think?

Weren’t both projects previously tied together via TIF? And now NuStyle isn’t hindered by the museum with a separate Beam package?

[Rixcy]

I think both projects were always somewhat linked but not completely dependent on each other. Even if NuStyle/Beam is moving ahead, OCM pause probably has more to do with internal leadership and fundraising timing than just TIF structure changes. Right now it feels more like a strategic reset rather than a full cancellation. Also, many museums these days are increasingly using digital membership systems like Membership Anywhere to improve visitor engagement and streamline operations, so once things stabilize, that could also help improve the membership and visitor experience side of things.

[WiinterU]

The Children's Museum does look larger than the central library.

[Garrett]

OK.

[nebport5]

'I'm so excited to be here in this particular city': Omaha Children's Museum Announces its new CEO

Starting Sept. 1, Richard Kissel, PhD, is joining the Omaha Children's Museum as its new Chief Executive Officer.

He pursued paleontology during his graduate work at the University of Toronto. During his career, Kissel has worked at Chicago's Field Museum, Yale's Peabody Museum, and the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.

Most recently, he worked as Chief Program Officer at The Doseum in San Antonio, Texas. It was there that Kissel's passion for working with young learners grew.

The Omaha Children's Museum team shared that the prospect of a new building location remains paused, as KETV first reported in November 2025. Despite that, the museum is working on several new initiatives right now, including new branding.

"The look the experience of the Omaha Children's Museum will have a fresh new look come this fall," Kissel said.

[skinzfan23]

Hopefully they can get things set straight and someday in the near future continue to get that new location built and open.