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Group reveals Lincoln plans

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BY RICHARD PIERSOL / Lincoln Journal Star

Thursday, Nov 09, 2006 - 03:04:29 pm CST

The vision is getting clearer now. A growing group of business leaders wants to focus private and public money and attention on producing a reliable local economic engine for the next generation. Related: Vision group growing

And their plans include giving the University of Nebraska-Lincoln room to grow by moving the state fair, adding a more vibrant downtown entertainment corridor, expanding Haymarket Park and building a new arena and convention center, among other things.

With local development attorney Kent Seacrest narrating their “first draft,” some of those leaders met with Journal Star editors and reporters this week. Local officeholders and other business people got a look, too, and the group is going public today.     

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Seacrest revealed a set of goals and projects that would cost millions in public and private investment, require consensus and some political action and would take years to accomplish. 

They are drawn from a variety of public studies and plans, like the Angelou Report on Lincoln’s economic future, master plans for UNL and downtown, the Mayor’s Arena Task Force and others.

“This is the first chance to tie them together,” said Seacrest.

The group had no cost estimates nor is it asking for immediate public approval or action.

Instead, it intends to expose the proposals to the people of Lincoln, raise money and make sure the whole thing makes sense.

“We are looking for money and ideas,” Seacrest said.

Last month’s disclosure of part of the 2015 Visioning Group proposals — moving the state fair to share quarters with the Lancaster Event Center on 84th Street — called public attention to these business people, almost all of whom lead and have big stakes in Lincoln-based businesses.

The idea started in several social and business gatherings, including a meeting in Omaha to discuss the development of the Interstate 80 corridor, said Tonn Ostergard, CEO of Crete Carrier Corp.

“Why focus on that when it’s not happening in Lincoln?” he said.

So what started as informal cocktail chat among executives turned into a coalition. And contrary to rumor, Seacrest said, there was no price tag to join.

“This is not a novel idea to have private-sector leadership,” he said. “The O Street Gang is gone.”

In simpler times past, the “gang” of retailers led Lincoln’s business community.

“This will be doing it in the global economy,” said Seacrest, who said the time was ripe for the private sector to answer a higher calling.

“For too long, as a community, we’ve been looking down at our toes,” he said. “Leadership, both public and private, has been questioned.”

As the group’s agenda developed, Ostergard said, UNL was a recurring theme.

And its proposals focus on UNL, its real estate and its institutions as assets from which the group hopes the city can draw prosperity and opportunity. 

So even though Seacrest and others have insisted their plans go beyond moving the fair to 84th Street, it’s an essential part of the plan.

“The university deserves the ability to grow,” Seacrest said. “We don’t think the community can afford to subsidize both (the fair and the event center).

“Both have plans for exposition and arena space that would go head to head.”

So in this group’s view, the state fair heads east, as it does in the view of the Mayor’s Arena Task Force.

The visioning group’s list of rationales and goals that demand action include:

* Expanding the economic base by fostering entrepreneurship and investment opportunities that attract people to Lincoln and keep them and their families here in their prime earning years.

* Offering better jobs, attractive housing, and expanded entertainment and recreation.

“We think the younger generation plays harder than the older generation,” Seacrest said. “We think Lincoln is missing the mark at attracting recreational activities.”

* Helping UNL leverage its missions of research, technology, education, the arts and student athletics — for the good of the entire community.

* Encouraging charitable giving and business investments.

* Creating more public/private partnerships to advance community projects.

There’s no shortage of plans for Lincoln’s improvement, Seacrest explained.

“Lincoln’s full of ideas already,” he said. “What we thought was missing was that they (the sources of the ideas) don’t talk to each other.”

People have been talking about an arena for years, moving the state fair for less time, so some of the ideas are fresher than others.

One notion, for example, calls for a research and development corridor that would run from O Street to State Fair Park and attempt to use the Beadle Center’s genetic research to attract more private investment.

“This is probably our biggest economic opportunity to leverage,” Seacrest said.

And the idea to put an Arts and Humanities Center at Ninth and P broke ground by accepting that not everybody’s a football fan all the time.

Recognizing Lincoln as being, as Seacrest described it, “pretty government-driven,” this initiative is using Haymarket Park as a model.

That was developed by the city, UNL and Nebco, the real estate development and construction company led by Jim Abel, one of the members of the Visioning Group.

“They built something that none of them by themselves could have built,” said Seacrest.

What’s in it for the visionaries, some will ask.

Marc LeBaron, chairman and CEO of Lincoln Plating, acknowledged his self-interest, and those of 500 families depending on people he employs.

“We have to selfishly keep and employ the best and the brightest,” LeBaron said. “I want my kids to come back and live in Lincoln.  There’s a huge commitment among the business community in making Lincoln a better place.”

Ostergard acknowledged there will be naysayers and skeptics.

“This group recognizes we’ve got to go forward. We all feel now’s the time, and not just to remain a sleepy little community that gets left behind.”

Reach Richard Piersol at 473-7241 or at dpiersol@journalstar.com.

***

The group’s members

As of Tuesday, the 2015 Visioning Group’s members were:

* Roger Severin, chairman and chief executive officer, Olsson Associates.

* Brad Korell, chief financial officer, Olsson Associates.

* Wendy Birdsall, president, Lincoln Chamber of Commerce.

* Tom Smith, chief executive officer, Smith Hayes Financial Services Corp.

* Jim Abel, chairman, Nebco.

* Tonn Ostergard, president and chief executive, Crete Carrier Corp.

* Mike Dunlap, chairman and co-chief executive officer, Nelnet.

* Tom Henning, president and chief executive officer, Security Assurity Group of insurance companies.

* Marc LeBaron, chairman and chief executive officer, Lincoln Plating.

* Lawrence Arth, chairman and chief executive officer, Unifi Mutual Holding Co., which owns Ameritas Life and other insurers.

* Terry Fairfield, president, University of Nebraska Foundation.


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whatever wrote on November 9, 2006 4:59 am:
" It will be interesting to see how all of this develops, pardon the pun. "

 hummmmm wrote on November 9, 2006 7:48 am:
" I find it interesting this VISIONARY group is only visioning to 2015, not much of a long range vision. Also noticed they have that river included where is the water going to come from? Isn't it a me too vision. "

 susan wrote on November 9, 2006 7:55 am:
" The people of the state should decide if the state fair park can be moved, not just a bunch of rich boys that probably have never even been to the state fair or anything else that goes on down there. All that we hear about is all this building of convention centers and expantion, how is Lincoln going to handle the traffic to this? The streets cannot handle the traffic now? "

 Steve wrote on November 9, 2006 8:01 am:
" While there are lots of unanswered questions...you have to plant a seed to get something to grow. Marc LeBaron's quote regarding "wanting his kids to come back and live in Lincoln" tells me his real benefit out of the whole "vision." The nay-sayers can say these vision members are after a financial gain, but I believe they're just concerned about Lincoln. "

 Mark wrote on November 9, 2006 8:14 am:
" I hope this plays out. We need to keep creative (ie smart) people in LIncoln, and this shouldn't be hard with the U here. Blue collar is the backbone of a community, but thing don't progress with them. I think LIncoln has potential to be something special; a destination for young professionals, if we have other options besides downtown frat bars, Gateway mall, and McHouses sprawling in every which way. "

 not with my money wrote on November 9, 2006 8:35 am:
" Just because the UNL foundation has millions and the lawyers and construction people want some of them is no reason for the tax payers to bear additional burden. If someone wants to BUY property and build an event center, and do so within the bounds of the law, then they should be allowed to do so. But don't tell me they should have some of my money and that they are really doing it for any reason except that they want to make money. The pressure to build an event center, that will end up like the Quest center, is just a goodbye kiss from the mayor to Abel, Dobson et al. If Fairfield wants to invest UNL foundation money he could spend it on UNL and not parcel it out to greedy self interested "social gatherers" Haymarket Park is a money loser even with the mayor moving the Fourth or July celebration. No more unlawful taking of private property so the city and it's "social gathering" partners can continue to feed at the trough. Let them spend and risk their own money. "

 Jason S. wrote on November 9, 2006 8:45 am:
" As a young professional that grew up in Lincoln, left for college, came back and have left again, this is a great idea. It is plain as day to those my age that Lincoln no longer has or wants the next generation to stick around. Upon receiving my MBA from UNL, there were no jobs that captured my drive and desire to think and perform at a higher level then pushing papers; believe me, I looked high and low. Upon reading this article it appears that those with the power to make a difference in Lincoln have decided to do so. With out knowing the specific details I would encourage those listed in the article to make sure they have done their research first, such as looking at cities with a large young professional’s population. Largely, the brain drain in Lincoln is due to the lack of economic support from the local government and opportunities for recent college graduates. It is a shame that UNL is located in Lincoln and very few businesses take advantage of the fresh, young, and willing to work talent that lives there (and might I say cheap labor). "

 Lars wrote on November 9, 2006 8:51 am:
" An idea long overdue. This community has many resources with the university as the centerpiece. Why not use the university and private VCs to develop commercial projects that will benefit everyone with new jobs and opportunities for growth. Bravo! "

 Alan wrote on November 9, 2006 8:59 am:
" I think it's a good idea but sounds like it needs a lot more planning. You just can't toss the state fair into the Lancaster events center and say there you go. That area would have to be expanded more building and more roads would have to be built in that area. Maybe they already have plans for that who knows. If they don't and they leave it as is. Good luck with that. I know a lot of people don’t attend the fair now but it’s spread out a little more now then it would be there. If all the people that attend the fair now try to get into that area without expansion it will be chaos. "

 Jim wrote on November 9, 2006 9:07 am:
" Isn't it interesting how they release this AFTER they voted down 423? "

 Already overtaxed wrote on November 9, 2006 9:07 am:
" Please don't fool yourself into thinking private money is going to pay for this. They have to be talking billions of dollars. The arena alone is $250 million. No, they eventually will be talking about taxpayers paying for all this. The premise behind this grand plan is to keep our children home in Lincoln, certainly an admirable idea, however, if this plan moves forward, you will be driving our kids from Lincoln because of the extremely high property taxes. And we all know they are already to high. "

 AB wrote on November 9, 2006 9:10 am:
" I too am a young professional with a UNL education. I did everything I could to stay in Lincoln, but there were few if any real jobs here. If you don't work for Walgreens or a governmental entity, there is little for you here. I was forced to take a great job in Omaha and have seen how the community supports improvements there (the Qwest Center is the 7th most attended concert arena in the world). The attitudes of people on this site are exactly why this city will suffer: No vision and distrust of everyone. You need to realize that in order to lower your taxes, you have to foster a revenue generating environment. Let's face it, retirees aren't spurring the economy and we need to keep young people with high paying jobs here. "

 Sean1 wrote on November 9, 2006 9:14 am:
" Okay, now somebody please tell me again why we have a Mayor and a City Council? "

 Look ahead wrote on November 9, 2006 9:16 am:
" This is needed. Lincoln and all of Lancaster County needs a long range plan to attract and develope more business and recreational opportunities to grow the tax base. It needs to start with changing some Old Timers minds about what is needed and how to compete with other cities in the 21st Century economy. The not in my backyard and its to expensive thought process has to go. The recent proposal to build a drag strip that would attract thousands of new tourist dollars to the city and county is a perfect example of why there needs to be change. Here is a private developer using private funds to build a facility that will generate tax revenue and all we hear is the head in the sands opponents cry "its to close to my farmland, build it somewhere else". Well I got news for you folks keep it up and it and every other opportunity will go somewhere else and that city/county will benefit for the tax revenue. "

 Up to speed wrote on November 9, 2006 9:59 am:
" Absolutely needed. Lincoln is way behind the times. $$$ is going to be an issue, but this has to get done. "

 Julia wrote on November 9, 2006 10:39 am:
" A, if the Quests center is the 7th most attended arena in the WORLD, the entire world, why can't it pay its bills? "

 This is going to be wrote on November 9, 2006 10:58 am:
" A very hard sell to Lincoln. We're looking at over $350 million in redevelopment - Which in all reality will be closer to $500+ million by the time construction starts (thanks to the ever rising costs of construction). There's even less of a guarantee that this will work as well as Omaha, for many reasons. First, Lincoln barely has an airport. There's no easy way to get in to town unless you fly to Omaha. Second, with the history of Lincoln's economy, most of these buildings will likely be of use for a few years, and then shut down to save money for the University. Any ideas on how much it costs to operate/maintain a building which isn't bringing in any revenue? Third, Dunlap? Really? Does anyone trust an officer from Nelnet? "

 DJC wrote on November 9, 2006 11:04 am:
" All of this sounds great, but as the saying goes, "The proof is in the pudding." The fact the business leaders have assembled to come up with this plan is great, but until the Mayor's Office, City Council and the City of Lincoln in general becomes business friendly, the plan will never become reality. That is a shame. "

 Jason wrote on November 9, 2006 11:17 am:
" Isn't it amazing that the "visionary" group is made of the same good 'ol boys group that's been paying the low wages that have run young professionals off, hindering outside development through political cronyism and won't have to fork out any money for themselves? Let's bring in people from OTHER cities who have had success. It's time for a FRESH look. "

 Duke wrote on November 9, 2006 11:37 am:
" Any more taxes and I'm gone. Lincoln has already got me backed to the wall. Anywhere you go in the U.S. you mention Nebraska and the first thing out of their mouths is = oh high taxes! Once again the planning is the cart before the horse. This is just like kids ideas, plan all the fun fun things and charge it to the elders. Where in the heck is the WORK ideas, like getting industry in. Its very simple, people have to have work before they can spend spend and play. Some how this doesn't get thru Lincolns' noggins'. The whole bottom line is, if a private developer doesn't come forth, which they are smart enough to know not to do, because Lincoln will demand it from the citizens. Where was all this leadership 30 years ago?? I know, prettying up this street, and moving the business and buying up the whole town, and running businesses out of town. Lincoln has a reputation that is not pretty. Having come from the east, I've heard it that far away. Instead of having a plan (which should have been 30 + yrs ago) and building one thing at a time, now we suddenly have to go gung ho. If people don't come now like to the Andre Rieu concert, that ought to tell you something. When asked how many were from Lincoln, few hand went up!! Everyone laughed. If the Lincoln people won't support something like that, then you've got a problem. It all goes back to REPUTATION, and as I've been told by out of staters, hurry thru Nebraska because everything costs double. I'm well aware as when I lived other states and came back to visit I never bot anything. Does that answer the sales tax drop?? If democrates raise taxes the lower income and retireds are going to be devastated. Nebraska has taxed to the brink and left NO cushion for taxes or anything else. Valueing the property like was done was just about as ignorant as you can get. "

 Time for a change wrote on November 9, 2006 11:38 am:
" the Qwest Center is on track to pay off it's debt. It has been generating a profit for 3 years now. You may be thinking of Mid America Center which is in Council Bluffs and is struggling to make ends meet. I would like to applaud the coalition to have the forsight to see that Lincoln is losing its youth, intelligence, talent, and leadership, and took the initative to address these problems. It seems as though the government leadership in this community is deliberately stunting the economic growth that it potentially has. "

 You're right wrote on November 9, 2006 11:51 am:
" this is much needed and the attituded expressed here is why Lincoln will remain a dormant, over-taxed town. Aging populations do not spur economic growth, just more taxes. You have to have economic success to lower general tax rates. Unfortunately, the average Lincolnite doesn't "get it". Oh well, nothing positive will happen until the current Mayor and City Council members are gone anyways. "

 relocated wrote on November 9, 2006 11:55 am:
" I'm a recent UNL grad that left. Make this happen, I'll come back. I'm pretty sure others would too. No one likes to move far away from family and friends. At the same time no one wants to settle in for good where everyone is cynical and doubtful about the city and its future. This would inspire much needed confidence, keep recent grads, and pull some of us back. Well done. "

 Carl wrote on November 9, 2006 11:59 am:
" "look ahead" is exactly why theres no leadership in this town. Wait til you retire and you barely have enough to live on. Thats the problem the "Old Timers" have been drained by the greedy younger ones that has been, I want, I want, I want NOW! When our salaries were $2,000. a month and rent an apt for $125.00 a month and all those years you were suppose to save so you could retire and pay now over $100,000 entrance fee and over $2,000 a month for living and $20,000. for a car and on and on. Yeh, there are states that compensate for their retired citizens and non retired citizens, BUT NOT IN NEBRASKA!!!! If the younger ones want to change it, then fork up the money and change it. How many of the older and retired people will go to the drag strip? When Lincoln should have been building, they didn't, they just raised taxes to buy the town. Lincoln has let the good times pass by I 80, they've already gone other places. Real estate investment trusts are not building the malls they were, Simon Property that owned part of the Mall of America in Minneapolis has sold all or most of their part to a Canadian concern. NOW Lincoln wants to get on the band wagon and spend spend spend on fun fun fun bldgs after the new has worn off, and leave tax payers digging deeper beyond their means!!??? "

 WAS gone wrote on November 9, 2006 12:26 pm:
" My wife and I retired 2 yrs. ago and moved to Arkansas because of the taxes in Nebr. By the time I add up the savings on the taxes on my home, car, social security, my pension check, it totals about $5-6,000 and we love it here. But I would give it up in a heartbeat and move back to Lincoln if I could have the same thing without the terrible taxes. "

 Chef wrote on November 9, 2006 12:33 pm:
" Here's a challenge to the twelve apostles. . . since the 1980's Lincoln has been identified as lacking venture capital. Will each member put up capital into a fund for helping business start ups. Like the Keva fund. We need Gates and Buffett-like actions from the well to do! Thanks. "

 Former Lincolnite wrote on November 9, 2006 1:16 pm:
" I was raised in Lincoln, educated myself at UNL and left 15 years ago. In order to expand the economic base and provide better jobs, Lincoln needs to attract new businesses with well-paying jobs. If that means offering tax incentives to attract them, then do it. Lincoln has no policy or plan for economic development - and it shows. Your property taxes are outrageous - how do you ever expect anyone to think beyond the annual tax bill they receive and start thinking about the future of their city? The effects of the "O Street Gang" are longstanding and disastrous and Lincolnite's general dislike of "outsiders" will never change. This plan is admiral and I wish you luck. "

 Amy wrote on November 9, 2006 2:28 pm:
" If we're trying to get away from being "pretty government driven", why do their plans center around more money being sunk into UNL? I'm also unsure how this plan differs from anything that's come from past 'visionaries' that wanted to make the Haymarket the epicenter of everything as well. Once again, we have a group of execs from various Lincoln corporations making decisions on behalf of the taxpayers that will inevitably bank roll this little experiment. UNL is not the solution to an economy that thrives on cheap, disposable labor. It IS the problem. Lincoln appears not to value intelligent, ambitious citizens, regardless of their age and educational background. Focusing primarily on keeping college grads in Lincoln is what has gotten us to where we are now. As an employee of an insurance company run by one of the visioning group members, I ask him to address these problems within his own company before tackling an entire city. Many of our associates have left his company, and Lincoln, for much better paying positions and more opportunities. The naysayers to this 'vision' (and others that came before) are skeptic because they see the hypocrisy of how Lincoln employers run their own companies compared to what they claim to value in our community. I would LOVE to see Lincoln become home to cutting edge businesses that provide job opportunities besides administrative positions and call centers. But I'm afraid this is just another instance of subsidizing the local supply of cheap labor and recruiter for Lincoln corporations. "

 Ralph wrote on November 9, 2006 2:33 pm:
" Heineman isn't mentioning property tax relief, he never did. When ruinous elected officials are the choice of the people, do they deserve to harvest sour grapes? It is sad the state is so far to the right that her extremist positioning might further leave students and economic hope behind. "

 Rich as Alaska? wrote on November 9, 2006 2:39 pm:
" Now is the time to start a "Honey Do" list for our elected officials. They have touted "ethanol"...will taxrelief (or more subsidies) be the metric citizens use to determine success? Should we expect ethan0l to provide benefits to Nebraskans and Lincoln as oil has provided citizens of Alaska? "

 Hemet wrote on November 9, 2006 2:55 pm:
" Somehow I see in-grown attitudes as a problem to this. The vision guys see "fostering entrepreneurship and investment opportunities" as an important element. This is a "stay at one job all your life and play it safe" town, not California. Who here is going to support the risk-thinking necessary for such a vision? And thus the cost of infrastructure? "

 Tender wrote on November 9, 2006 3:08 pm:
" How about Lincoln build the worlds biggest nursing home. "

 Maya wrote on November 9, 2006 3:18 pm:
" If the "Visionary" group wants the arena, convention center, etc., I say put your money where your mouth is. If you have this vision for Lincoln, YOU build it, and they will come. I've lived in Lincoln, for over 25 years and would like to retire here, but if property taxes rise much more, I will have to retire soemewhere else. Do not raise property taxes to build this vision. IT's a good idea, but needs to be financed by private sources and not the spend crazy current government of Lincoln. "

 Dee wrote on November 9, 2006 3:19 pm:
" Lincoln has been sitting around letting good things get away for years and years. Its about time someone stepped up with some ideas that they may or may not be able to sell to the elected officials in this town. I left Lincoln once, came back only because of family. I'm making less money and paying 4 times as much in property taxes in a house worth half the value as the home I owned in Denver. More people mean lower property taxes. Its time Lincoln loses its "little town" mentality and does something that would make people want to come here to do business and live. While we're at it, why don't we do something smart about the ridiculous airport situation in this town?? I love this idea but please tell me it won't, in any way, raise my property taxes?!?!? "

 Just want to point out... wrote on November 9, 2006 3:29 pm:
" Under Terry Fairfield's leadership the University of Nebraska Foundation raised well over $700 Million for the university in a few short years. He is an incredibly adept fundraiser and knows better than anyone how to involve private citizens for the public good. I think his involvement with this project is a huge asset and everyone should keep an open mind. "

 Banks-Kerkman wrote on November 9, 2006 5:41 pm:
" Like many others on this board apparently, I started in Lincoln, finished graduate work elsewhere, and saw no economic reason to come back. The complaints about high taxes are very annoying because it's all relative. Sure one can pay less taxes and live in Arkansas, but come on, are we trying to attract that crowd? Do we want the low taxes, cruddy services crowd? I choose to live and work in one of the highest taxed cities in the country. Not only are the property taxes on my smallish condo exorbinantly high, but I pay a higher rate of sales tax than anyone in Nebraska does, AND a local income tax on top of my state income tax! (That's right, a city income tax, can you imagine!!!) But you'll never catch me complaining because I live in one of the most culturally inspiring cities in the world. My taxes pay for an extensive and efficient mass transit system and I have access to more 'play' options than I could ever seriously hope to accomplish. The vast majority of full time professional jobs in my city are 35 hours a week and our holiday time makes State of NE holiday time seem downright miserly. (And no, I don't live in Sweden!) There are over 100 institutions of higher education in my city alone. Just to drive home the point that I live in a popular place, we expect to add a million residents over the next 15 years, many of whom will be young professionals, members of the creative class. You think those next million will be complaining about the taxes? Yeah, a fair share of them might, but if all the attendent amenities weren't worth it, we'd be losing people, not gaining them. Lincoln obviously faces a much different situation and even with this planned development, I probably won't be moving back. But some of the creative class will. In short, Lincoln faces a choice. It can be a be a cultural outpost in a land of little, paying the requisite taxes to support such an infrastructure or it can copy the model of places like Little Rock, Arkansas, where anti-tax sentiment keeps property value perpetually low and new investment is sparse. It doesn't suprise me at all that someone in Arkansas would love to move back to Nebraska. You get what you pay for. This is a good starting point. Now Lincolnites need to take the democratic process into their own hands. Business leaders provide one perspective, the public must counter with its own. It's only through such a dialectic that a good plan will be forged. Sure we'll lose the Duke's of the world, but the Little Rock's of the world will be all the better for it! "

 whatever wrote on November 9, 2006 6:36 pm:
" Well, we have some people that are bringing something to the table. It's a place to start, let's see where it goes. But attitudes do need to change. A point was made that this is an expensive place to live for retired folks, I agree, but part of the reason is because we have SOOO many retired folks and very few young people. Remember, 30 years ago or so we had more children in this state than we do now and our population is at least 20 percent higher than 30 years. Retired folks are heavily subsidized by state government in the form of Medicaid and Homestead exemptions just to name a few. True, education is expensive for the young, but that has always been the case, what's different is how much the elderly are subsidized compared to 30 years ago. "

 I left, too wrote on November 9, 2006 7:46 pm:
" I too tried to build a career in Lincoln, but got tired of turning down offers of 25 to 40 percent more money to move elsewhere. You see, I could not get paid a lot in Lincoln, because I wasn't anybody's nephew or son-in-law, nor was my father anyone's old fraternity brother. My cost of living in Colorado is higher, but the higher salary and much lower property taxes more than offset those costs. Nebraska Big Shots, you can hold all the meetings and develop all the plans you want. But until you start spreading the wealth, you will not keep the best people in Nebraska. "

 Late O'Day wrote on November 9, 2006 7:59 pm:
" Why does this remind me of when George Bush and his rich buddies conned Arlington Texas into building a Stadium for them and even grabbed surrounding land for them via eminent domain? Public tax money to the tune of $135 million went into a facility that the public didn't own. Are we seeing a repeat of that here? I'd like some assurances up front. "

 jerry wrote on November 9, 2006 8:45 pm:
" It's like turning a fox loose in a henhouse if the public lets this one pass. Who's idea was it to get a group like this together to make recomendations to the city? What are they trying to prove? All you need to make your taxes even higher are a convention center, hotels, and a strip mall paid by your taxes. I heard when I lived there the city county and developers were going to try something like this. I worked in government at the time and was told it was hush up. I guess this is the riverwalk that was the hush up at the time, except there is no river just railroad tracks and salt creek. Go out and attract real business's with that odor around. This kind of blind leading the blind is only part of lincolns problem of people leaving. To whatever, I didn't see any homestead for retirees when I lived there. ONly if you were 100% disabled. I agree with I left too, why live there and put up with the vile tempers of the people and high property taxes when there are so many good places to live. "

 Bill wrote on November 9, 2006 10:58 pm:
" I absolutely love Lincoln. I grew up there, went to UNL then had to leave for a job. I'm back a couple times each year. I've often said I'd move back to Lincoln if I could get a couple specific jobs that interest me. Now....I'm not so sure. I've noticed two things over the last few years reading comments such as these in the Journal. First observation is the obligatory slam at Bush or the Republicans. Seems we can't discuss how to buy a bag of potatoe chips without slamming the "right wing". Second, any mention of "progress" or "growth" draws rebuttals that seem to come straight from the local nursing home. They all have the "Old Fart" tone to them! There are a lot of things I like "left alone". Living in a dying city isn't one of them. There are lots of legitimate beefs with local and state government, but remember, you have the right to vote them in and vote them out. Bottom line...there is a single theme that seems to permeate these rebuttal threads when any type of growth and forward thinking is envisioned in Lincoln. That theme involves a person with a shovel standing guard 24hrs a day ready to beat that vision into the ground anytime it appears...which really surprises me given how well Nebraskans handled the necessary changes with the UNL football program! (Yea, right) "

 Proud NU student wrote on November 9, 2006 11:48 pm:
" OK first of all, I'm sick and tired of everyone COMPLAINING about their taxes, I pay the same taxes that everyone else does, and I don't complain one bit, because I must be the only one who is AWARE of what the taxes I pay go towards. We want all these things here in Lincoln, but somehow we don't think we should have to pay for them. QUIT COMPLAINING!!! If you don't like it, move somewhere else where the taxes are lower, and see what kind of roads you have to drive on, or what kind of public and/or higher education is accessible for your children/grandchildren. Secondly, to those of you who complain about the money spent on UNL, do you not realize that the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is the life-force of this town? There are 25,000 students who attend school here, pay tuition here, live here, work here, pay sales tax here, rent apartments here, I could go on for days. Just imagine what our local economy would be like without the University. As someone who used to work in a downtown establishment, and the mall, I can tell you, the summer months when all those students go home are pretty meager. Thirdly, I am in graduate school right now, and when I am finished, my only opportunities are to teach at UNL or Wesleyan, if I want to stay in Lincoln (which I most certainly do). But this illustrates my point: the average time of finding a job after graduating from UNL is around 8 months, if you stay in Lincoln, 13 months. No wonder we can't keep our best and brightest in state, let alone in our own city- we don't have any jobs for them! Back to my earlier point, more jobs+more ammenities= more (young) people= lower taxes, thus we need to do whatever is necessary to attract more people so that you people who complain about your high taxes can quit complaining. My children will be starting college in 4 years, I sure hope that Lincoln (or rather, Lincolnites) will have it together by the time they graduate from college, so they don't need to look to Minneapolis, Chicago, or Denver for a good job. "

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