[McBain II]

I think a parking garage would be a very bad idea. Sure, whatever development goes there should definitely have a substantial parking structure, but to replace the Civic with nothing but a gigantic parking garage would be a step in the wrong direction, at least in my humble opinion. That is immensely important real estate, in both monetary value and aesthetics. We really should aim higher there.

Again, just my opinion.

[agskinner]

Originally Posted by Bosco55David

I think a parking garage would be a very bad idea. Sure, whatever development goes there should definitely have a substantial parking structure, but to replace the Civic with nothing but a gigantic parking garage would be a step in the wrong direction, at least in my humble opinion. That is immensely important real estate, in both monetary value and aesthetics. We really should aim higher there.

Again, just my opinion.

That's cool, but what other options are better than revenue for the City in need?

What would be better than a garage. Why is that real estate so important in aesthetics. Right now an aging, hardly used structure occupies it. Monetary wise, anything other than a revenue stream would be a loss. Omaha would have to sell the land.

If Omaha has prime real estate, revenue issues, parking problems, why not solve all that?

Just want to see what other views are out there and options.

[Busguy2010]

Originally Posted by agskinner

That's cool, but what other options are better than revenue for the City in need?

What would be better than a garage. Why is that real estate so important in aesthetics. Right now an aging, hardly used structure occupies it. Monetary wise, anything other than a revenue stream would be a loss. Omaha would have to sell the land.

If Omaha has prime real estate, revenue issues, parking problems, why not solve all that?

Just want to see what other views are out there and options.

If you were given the option to give that land to somebody that would build a place for a thousand people to live, or a place for a thousand people to park, what would you do? Living quarters will keep people closer to the Qwest, the ballpark longer and will also raise the likelyhood of high-density based public transportation (Streetcar, light rail), which in turn would spur monumental development and other means of the city gaining revenue. Among other things, these could be parking garages on smaller blocks that would be less intrusive than a civic-sized block parking garage.

[McBain II]

Fair questions. Allow to respond point by point.

Originally Posted by agskinner

That's cool, but what other options are better than revenue for the City in need?

I think the "need" of the city is greatly overstated. Omaha is not broke. In fact, the restaurant tax will likely give us some surplus cash, so I wouldn't worry about it too much. Of course there is never a situation where more revenue to the city would be a bad thing, but I think this would be an acceptable trade off.

What would be better than a garage.

Many things, in my opinion. A substantial mixed use tower with an adjoining parking structure would be my preference.

Why is that real estate so important in aesthetics. Right now an aging, hardly used structure occupies it.

I think we must look at this in context. The Civic was an important venue for our city as recently as a couple years ago. Time and other developments (Qwest/CenturyLink) have made it obsolete, so it is now time to replace it. We should aim to replace it with something of equal or greater value to the city.

Monetary wise, anything other than a revenue stream would be a loss. Omaha would have to sell the land.

I have to disagree with you here. Omaha could lease the land and have a substantial revenue stream for many years, and even if sold, the land is plenty valuable. Also you must consider the tax revenue that can be generated by whatever goes in the Civic's place. No matter what course the city takes, they will experience financial gain.

If Omaha has prime real estate, revenue issues, parking problems, why not solve all that?

Well again, these issues are drastically overstated. I mentioned the revenue already, but most of the parking complaints here come from people with a small town mentality who believe they should be able to park (and without paying anything, God forbid) right outside a major venue and walk in. Omaha is a good size city and getting bigger everyday, so those days are long gone. People will need to realize that sometimes they will have to pay for parking and maybe walk a block to whatever downtown event they are going to. I am not very enthusiastic about the idea of erecting huge parking garages or building even more surface lots to appease those types. I'd rather we make parking garages part of mixed use developments that are spread out across Downtown and get started on a streetcar/light rail system to help move people around.

Just want to see what other views are out there and options.

And I'm glad you decided to share yours, even if I disagree with it. We need more discussion around these parts.

[agskinner]

Originally Posted by Busguy2010

If you were given the option to give that land to somebody that would build a place for a thousand people to live, or a place for a thousand people to park, what would you do? Living quarters will keep people closer to the Qwest, the ballpark longer and will also raise the likelyhood of high-density based public transportation (Streetcar, light rail), which in turn would spur monumental development and other means of the city gaining revenue. Among other things, these could be parking garages on smaller blocks that would be less intrusive than a civic-sized block parking garage.

Good point!

To Bosco:

Very good points!

I hadn't heard that Omaha was doing better financially. That's great.

Is Suttle getting credit for that?

[McBain II]

Originally Posted by agskinner

Good point!

To Bosco:

Very good points!

I hadn't heard that Omaha was doing better financially. That's great.

Is Suttle getting credit for that?

Thanks!

Suttle is indeed getting much credit for it. The restaurant tax was his idea and while the usual tax cranky types flipped out over it, there is some belief that it's impact on the budget is probably what saved him from being recalled.

Wednesday Morning QB

[agskinner]

That's good.

Suttle got a lot of crap early but he seemed to put things together.

Fahey gets a lot of blame but I'm sure with the CWS doing what it's doing, he'll get a lot of credit later.

There are plenty of options for the Civic, they just need to act on it. It can't just sit there going unused, as much as it should be used.

[iamjacobm]

Ok I kind of spaced this thread here it goes.

One portion Creighton builds a new business school. Their current one is kind of crammed into the science building and really unattractive. Creighton could also consider student housing if done correctly on the property.

The rest two towers get built. One would be a hotel to replace the current Double Tree building. That has been mentioned to be torn down eventually to connect 16th street again. Why not get them to build a similar structure pretty close to their current location? Lets say 250 feet.

The rest of the property is a mixed use office/condo tower. Lets call it 350 feet.

All with street level retail bays.

Those building sizes are not out of the realm of possibility in the next decade and would look even taller compared to the rest of the buildings because of the hill the property sort of sits on.