WSJ Sucess story - Omaha and six other locations

[nebugeater]

Take a look at the Wall Street Journal today ( 7/28/08) and look at the special section that they have today. It is titled

Sucess Stories - A Look at seven places that took different approaches to economic development - and came out ahead.

The seven areas featured are

Kalamazoo MI
El Paso TX
Kobe Japan
Wismar Germany
Omaha Ne
Rural Ken.
Colorado Springs CO




http://online.wsj.com/public/page/2_1593.html

IN WITH THE NEW

• The Problem: Omaha's downtown was losing businesses and residents.
• The Economic Game Plan: Gobble up surrounding suburbs and reclaim big, rusting chunks of downtown for arts and entertainment.
• The Results So Far: Civic leaders have been tremendously successful at raising cash for downtown projects and luring tenants to the city

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1216764 ... 93_leftbox

Clear it, and they will build. That's part of the formula that has made Omaha, Neb., one of the nation's biggest success stories.

Omaha ended the last century as one of the most disadvantaged cities in the U.S. Its downtown was crumbling, as businesses closed and residents fled to the suburbs. And there wasn't much else in the area to latch onto: To the east, the city is pinned against a shallow, commerce-free river, and in the other directions it faces a prairie with a dwindling population.

Take the Qwest Center Omaha, an 18,500-seat indoor arena that opened in 2003. Built for $291 million, about a quarter of its construction was funded by wealthy locals. Two years after opening, Qwest ranked in the top 10 among tickets sold for entertainment facilities world-wide. Last year, it drew more than 320,000 ticket holders. Our goal was to make Omaha the place to be on weekends," says Roger Dixon, the director of the center

Its downtown is growing into a Mecca for the arts, both popular and highbrow. Besides the Qwest arena, private donors have helped fund the $92 million Holland Performing Arts Center, set on land where Swanson once churned out TV dinners. Up next: a $140 million minor-league baseball stadium, key to holding onto Omaha's signature sports franchise, the College World Series.

As the big-ticket attractions proliferate, smaller players squeeze in. Film Streams, an arts cinema that doubles as an opera house, came in last July, right next to the trendy rock club and independent record-company offices. All three still face a vacant lot, but probably not for long.

You can see the rest on line or in print along with the stories from the other six locations.

[nebugeater]

Make sure to take a look at the interactive map that is on line as part of the story. kind of cool.


http://online.wsj.com/public/resources/ ... ct=OMAHA08

[thenewguy]

looks good!

[nativeomahan]

I read the story on Omaha and some of the other cities. After reading the piece on Omaha I can't believe that the two authors actually live here. It sounded like they cruised in to the city for a half dozen interviews and phoned in their story while jetting to their next destination. And the photo they used was at least 10 years old. No FNB building! I mean, come on.

I have lived in Omaha my entire life. 51 years and counting. And to hear the city of my birth described thusly....
"Omaha ended the last century as one of the most disadvantaged cities in the U.S. Its downtown was crumbling, as businesses closed and residents fled to the suburbs" really torks me. I was at the Millennium party Omaha threw on New Year's Eve 1999 (1 year early, but what that was another story), and I didn't notice anyone being mugged or hit by a crumbling building. This is just silly talk by these writers. Omaha was not as bad as they describe it being 8 years ago, but I guess they had to tear it down in order to have it rise like the proverbial phoenix in their piece.

[guy4omaha]

And to hear the city of my birth described thusly....
"Omaha ended the last century as one of the most disadvantaged cities in the U.S. Its downtown was crumbling, as businesses closed and residents fled to the suburbs" really torks me. I was at the Millennium party Omaha threw on New Year's Eve 1999 (1 year early, but what that was another story), and I didn't notice anyone being mugged or hit by a crumbling building. This is just silly talk by these writers.

I agree with your sentiments wholeheartedly. This idea that Omaha has only recently had reason to brag makes me livid. It has been a great city for a long time. Different times, different expectations... yes of course. But the same can be said for all the other cities in America too.

It is like the only way some of these folks will grudgingly admit Omaha has its own groove is to say that it sucked until recently. Anything apparently to make a headline as you suggested.

[Omaha Cowboy]

I agree with you both!..

..Ciao..LiO....Peace

[Big E]

"Omaha ended the last century as one of the most disadvantaged cities in the U.S. Its downtown was crumbling, as businesses closed and residents fled to the suburbs" really torks me.

Why does that tork you? Because it was true?

While, yes, obviously, the same thing could be said about most every city in the country, very few were as notorious as Omaha for their urban "renewal", very few were as decimated by the lure of the 'burbs, and very few waited as long as Omaha to do something about it. (Detroit and St. Louis come to mind, but not many others.)

Omaha has come a long way and has a great deal to be proud of, including how far the urban center has come in the last decade plus. Being on the national cutting edge of said urban revitalization is not one of them.

I'm not going into a Jobber's Canyon/urban vs suburban/east vs west thing here, but for cripe's sake can we please take off the rose tinted glasses for a moment? The article was pretty spot on and balanced.

[nativeomahan]

"Omaha ended the last century as one of the most disadvantaged cities in the U.S. Its downtown was crumbling, as businesses closed and residents fled to the suburbs" really torks me.

Why does that tork you? Because it was true?

While, yes, obviously, the same thing could be said about most every city in the country, very few were as notorious as Omaha for their urban "renewal", very few were as decimated by the lure of the 'burbs, and very few waited as long as Omaha to do something about it. (Detroit and St. Louis come to mind, but not many others.)
...
The article was pretty spot on and balanced.

As fair and balanced as Fox Spews.
To say Omaha was "crumbling" in 1999 is pure out and out Bull Schit. We had, and have, our problems. But take a drive down 5 or 6 miles of Troost St. in KCMO and tell me Omaha looks worse. Or consider walking at night a mile west of the Magnificent Mile in Chicago without an armed escort. Take a wrong turn off NY Avenue in Northeast DC in broad daylight and dare to drive with your car doors unlocked. All are great cities, but Omaha does not, and did not, ever experience the kind of extensive urban decay that those cities face.

I would wager a dollar that the authors of the WSJ story have NEVER lived here. There article was largely smoke and mirrors.

[Finn]

I would have to agree with native and guy. Plus Big E is usually wrong!

Downtown Omaha may have been stagnant and largely a 9 to 5 workplace for decades. But, it was still a CBD during the day and stagnant, not a cesspool at night. It was not one of the most disadvantaged cities in the US. I agree with native's assessment of other cities. Similarly, Baltimore has miles of areas much worse but has seen activity on the waterfront. There is a nice tourist area centered along the water, but Baltimore has much larger disadvantaged sections.