Omaha considers improving 7 business districts using ARPA money

OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) – This Tuesday, the Omaha City Council will consider some improvements around the metro.

“It’s for public safety,” said Stephen Curtiss, the City of Omaha Finance Director.

And if approved, the city will use $2 million dollars remaining for the American Rescue Plan.

“We’re pretty much at the very end of the program as far as committing the $112 million per federal guidelines,” Curtiss said. “The federal regulations were pretty descriptive about how they can be used meaning it was for affordable housing, public space improvements, the city could fix some financial issues with rehiring and loss revenue.”

Stephen Curtiss said their goal is to fix up seven qualifying business districts:

In Benson – Install permanent crosswalk bollards at five locations along Maple Street between 60th and 62nd Streets to enhance pedestrian safety. Estimated cost: $254,000

In Blackstone – Install bollards and lighting in the alley north of Farnam Street between 39th Street and 40th Street. Estimated cost: $285,000

In downtown – Improved lighting in the Old Market. Estimated cost: Up to $245,000.

In Dundee – Concrete sidewalk repairs throughout the BID. Estimated cost: $40,000.

In North 24th Street – Install permanent pedestrian lighting on N. 24th Street between Pinkney Street and Ohio Street. Estimated cost: Up to $285,000.

In North Saddle Creek – Install permanent pedestrian lighting improvements along N. Saddle Creek Road and Hamilton. Estimated cost: $285,000.

In South Omaha – install permanent lighting within the BID. Estimated cost: $285,000.

Matthew Oberst with the Blackstone Improvement District says these improvements would help add more light poles to the area. He told 6 News the district gets quite crowded in the summer time, especially when the district holds big events.

“We intend to make this particular working alley a safer place for pedestrians when we gather for those events,” Oberst said.

Curtiss said they have five months until the end of the year to allocate the ARPA dollars and until 2026 to spend it.

“Thankful we got this money,” Curtiss said. “It was at one chance for the city to sure up its reserves and we’ve gone through a lot of reserves of not having proper staffing and losing a lot of revenue, but the money had to be used for very specific reasons.”

Once the city makes a decision, improvements start right away this summer.

Copyright 2024 WOWT. All rights reserved.