Overhauling Preservation

Below is an article that was originally printed in the Omaha World Herald.

Overhauling preservation
By Jeffrey Robb WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER
Posted:  11/09/2011 1:00 AM

Omaha and Council Bluffs need a makeover of their historic preservation efforts to overcome a weak image and baggage from the past.

That's the conclusion of a new report written by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which urged preservationists in the two cities to step into the future.

To jump-start the efforts, the Omaha By Design organization announced Tuesday that it will launch a pilot project to create a historic zoning district for an Omaha neighborhood.  After surveying dozens of people involved in preservation efforts and related fields in the community, the authors found that the local movement lacks vibrancy and that people don't consider historic preservation a community priority. In Omaha, the authors say the decades-old demolition of Jobbers Canyon outside the Old Market remains an open wound for many.

The report recognizes a number of successes over the years, including the revitalization of downtown Council Bluffs' historic 100 block of West  Broadway and renovation of the TipTop building in north downtown and South Omaha's Livestock Exchange Building into apartments and commercial space.

The authors recommend improving the image of historic preservation, setting up a new leadership structure and capitalizing on incentives to promote projects.

The new report already is helping focus preservationists' efforts. In addition to the pilot zoning project, two leading Omaha preservation groups - Landmarks Inc. and Restore Omaha - are working to merge their organizations into a new advocacy group.

Connie Spellman, Omaha By Design's director, said she believes attitudes in the community toward preservation are shifting.  "Let the past be the past and let's continue with the trend that's already starting to emerge," she said.

Omaha By Design, which has promoted conservation and development in established parts of Omaha, brought in the National Trust to provide an outsider's perspective amid concerns about lagging membership and funding among preservation groups. The report was funded through a grant by the Iowa West Foundation.

The authors found that a large group of people still bemoan the 1988-89 Jobbers Canyon demolition as a major defeat to preservation efforts.

In a controversial decision, city leaders approved the removal of the six-block warehouse district just outside the Old Market to make way for ConAgra's downtown campus. Although more than 20 warehouses were lost, Omaha kept ConAgra, gained a new base of downtown workers and sparked riverfront development.  "Jobbers Canyon was a very unfortunate outcome," said Amy Cole, one of the report's authors. "But we must move forward."

The report says designation of local landmarks has all but stopped, use of historic tax credits for rehabilitation projects has slowed and the National Trust's Main Street program for historic downtowns is not active.

To boost local efforts, the National Trust recommends developing preservation incentives and implementing new zoning protections for older neighborhoods.

The City of Omaha's urban design rules allow individual areas to seek city approval of a neighborhood conservation district. But only two neighborhoods, Dundee and South 10th Street outside of downtown, have districts in place.

Omaha By Design plans to pick a neighborhood in the coming weeks and tailor preservation and building design rules to that area by March. The City Council will need to approve the zoning district.
With a template in hand, Omaha By Design hopes other neighborhoods can replicate the zoning district for their own areas, Spellman said.

Overall, preservationists need to develop a more positive message about successful projects and benefits to the community, the report says. And local groups should reach out to neighborhood groups, young community leaders and environmentally conscious people interested in conservation.

Restore Omaha is cited as a bright spot.  The group first organized a conference in 2005 to give restoration advice to owners of Omaha's older homes. In addition to the annual conference, Restore Omaha held a historic restoration tour last month in Council Bluffs.

Now, Restore Omaha and Landmarks Inc., which formed in 1965 out of a failed effort to save Omaha's historic post office, are working on a merger.
Nicole Malone, committee chairwoman for Restore Omaha, said the two organizations have a lot of the same leaders.

The new, as-yet-unnamed organization would focus on advocacy and run the Restore Omaha conference and tour, Malone said. It would use Landmarks' existing nonprofit status for fundraising.
"If you can't move forward," Malone said, "you don't survive."

In Council Bluffs, Jim Kieffer, president for Preserve Council Bluffs, said the new report has provided direction for his organization. Kieffer said he will do more to get out information on financial incentives for restoration projects.  "There really are things we can do here to make a difference."

Contact the writer:
402-444-1128, jeff.robb@owh.com
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