" I thought the Grand was to be the catalyst for future development. Maybe, the City should buy up all of downtown and give it away as an incentive to build. "

" at least there some sort of progress being made to revitalize the city. We've seen to many examples in the past 3 months that point to Lincoln becoming stagnant. Let's just hope this is the right direction. "

" although I wish the new tower would look that big. that picture is very offscale. The tower in the picture looks to be about 370' compared to the maximum height allowed of 275'. With that said, a new tower in Lincoln is a project that I believe would build momentum for other positive projects for downtown such as new retail areas and a new arena and hotels. Lincoln needs to step out of the 20th century and start planning for the future. "

" What they always fail to mention in these articles is that the main reason we're always being bombarded with these downtown "revitalization" projects is so the same dozen or so families can continue to make money off the properties that have been in their families for generations. The only tools the government should use to promote growth are zoning laws and tax incentives, don't ask taxpayers to foot the bill for projects designed to benefit only a few. "

" I was born and raised in Lincoln and left in 1987. I think there are about 250,000 people in Lincoln now but every time I come back there I wouldn't know it from the looks of things. I think the last major building of any importance downtown was the old NBC Bank (now Wells Fargo I believe), finished in 1976! My god, it's about time somebody had some vision for something in downtown Lincoln. I hope they get it right. Boston, Massachusetts "

" Boston, Massachusetts indeed, and agreed. Lincoln, let's look at what has happened over the past four decades and learn. Buildings that have been built for one purpose have taken on another purpose. If we build, let's build smart, let's build strong and with flexibility. What was once a department store has upscaled to offices and academia in the downtown. What was once a shopping mall also transformed into an academic arena. A theatre slated to bring vitality to the downtown has served it's purpose and been razed in just over a decade of service. Museums sit scantly visited, yet important and prominent for the cities culture. Festivals come and go over regulated and finally extinguished (July Jamm). And back to Boston... Boston is a bustling town. Candle pin bowling alleys (ever heard of it?... investigate! Lincoln could use such unadulterated frivolities such as this). An integrated academic district with the commercial retail district, look to Harvard Square. The Univerity of Nebraska and Downtown Lincoln could embrace a few of those qualities (and look to Madison, Wisconsin... another government seat and state academic headquarters, where the academic campus of the UofW and the downtown seamlessly flow together in a rich cultural socially enticing manner). Lincoln still has a border between the UofN and the downtown. The fledgling draw for students (sadly) is the bar scene. Can Lincoln offer little else? I'm disappointed by this, both as a former student and as a current resident of the downtown district. The visionary teams hold fast to things such as arenas, hotels, and dining facilities... all of which have their place but all of which are so very for the pursuit of endeavors such as conventions, and sports, and concerts, that have short bursts of staying power. These are the experiences of our lives that are temporary. These are not the everyday foundations of a culture. The example of the predominant culture of football, the full one fifth (at best) of the weekends a year, can such things be the definition of the culture we have to offer in Lincoln. Sadly for nightlife we have restaurants and bars. The dancing is minimal, primarily for the youngest of the young. The pastimes and novelties are nonexistant (such as candle pin bowling). The lack of cultural enrichment from street performers is noticed (even compared to the Omaha Old Market). Spaces need to be created to indulge spontaneous unrehearsed social interaction. Places need to be planned that will harmoniously blend the interactions of people in ways that connect us, beyond the commercial scripts of paying a tab or flagging down a waitress or buying reserve tickets. In Lincoln, Nebraska, we need real ways to connect. We need real ways to encourage each other to reach out to the person next to us, whether neighbor or passerby on the street. We need innovation. We don't need simply more of the same old stagnant pastime of food and rest stops. We need imagination. More than ever, in a world where people isolate themselves into their small corner of friends they are tethered to by technology. We need 2020 vision. 2015 is simply blurred and quite franly falls short of the goal. "

" im glad the 2015 group is here. I dont see anyone else coming up with new ideas for lincoln. I like the disign of the skyscraper in the picture that is what needs to be built. "