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Nebraska
Omaha Charrette Considers Design of New Traditional Neighborhood Set for City's Northwest Side
Led by Florida-based PlaceMakers experts on New Urbanism, a five-day Omaha charrette to design a new traditional neighborhood for 160 acres owned by local developer Herb Freeman on the city's far northwest side attracted up to 50 attendees each day, while his project's web site recorded from 500 to 1,800 daily hits, with many guests asking questions, offering ideas or, reports Omaha World-Herald writer Deborah Shanahan, sharing ''heartfelt remembrances about growing up in neighborhoods where people easily gathered, children were within walking distance of each other and ice cream cones and other treats were simple.''
With the charrette's results now going to engineers and the complete design and engineering plans later heading to city agencies, the writer presents a sample of public reactions to the area's first prospective implementation of New Urbanism.
Omaha By Design Director Connie Spellman: ''This is a perfect example of what we're calling walkable residential neighborhoods. To see the concept brought to Omaha is so great. It's exciting to see someone with the vision and courage to try something new.''
A former city planning director, private consultant Bob Peters working on the project: ''As development costs -- construction costs, the related land costs, the financing costs -- all continue to increase, there will be a need to increase the density of subdivisions. The lesson that will be learned here is the level of quality and the grand visions created while fitting 1,000 living units on a property that typically would have 300 to 350.''
A downtown Rows at SoMa developer, Bluestone Development President Christian Christensen: ''I have seen this in other markets, and I think it will be 10 times better than they're able to present. This is a true neighborhood. I think once people see what it's like to live there, we'll see more pop up.''
Resident Rod Benson, co-owner of 10 acres recently bought by his family for a nursery business near the Freeman tract: ''It's a destination place that I envision our family being part of it. It's so different than the sprawl going on in Omaha right now. If there's a way I could recreate the way my childhood was, this is it. This has places to walk to, things to do that don't cost a family a fortune.'' Omaha World-Herald 10/9/2006
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