Thread: NE: Candidates pledge help for north Omaha

ABSOLUTE INSANITY!...As info, North Omaha contains a high concentration of the black population and South Omaha which historically was made up of enclaves of Italian, Chech, Lithuanian, etc. has turned into "Little Mexico" and contains the highest concentration of both Mexican-Americans and illegal Mexicans in Nebraska. Now the taxpayers are going to make them "tourist spots!"


Published Monday | May 5, 2008
North, south Omaha stand to reap state tourism funds
BY CHRISTOPHER BURBACH
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER
http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_page=2 ... d=10326883

• North, south Omaha stand to reap state tourism funds

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• North, south Omaha stand to reap state tourism funds
Sure, the Berkshire stockholders in town know about the gems at Borsheims, but not many visitors to Omaha discover what some might consider tourism diamonds in the rough.

Yanel Lozoya, 15, dances with Juan Sandoval, 19, to a live band during the Cinco de Mayo festival Saturday evening in south Omaha. A provision in a new state law could provide funds for close to 20 years to develop tourism in south Omaha and other areas with a "high concentration of poverty."A little-noticed provision in a new state law aims to remedy that. It will take a portion of state sales tax revenue generated by the Qwest Center Omaha and the Hilton Omaha and use it to develop tourism in north and south Omaha.

The money could help polish such existing tourist attractions as El Museo Latino or Love's Jazz & Arts Center. It also could help create new sites and events that celebrate the heritage of some of Omaha's oldest and most multicultural neighborhoods.

The money — $267,000 this year — is 10 percent of the City of Omaha's portion of the so-called turnback tax. The city must apply the remaining amount — $2.4 million this year — to Qwest Center debt payments.

The turnback tax payments could continue for close to 20 years. With a modest rate of growth in sales tax revenue, the provision eventually could pump a total of $10 million into tourism for parts of Omaha that really could use the infusion, said State Sen. Brad Ashford of Omaha, who helped fashion the original turnback tax law and a 2007 revision.

"It puts state money into expanding tourism opportunities in Omaha," Ashford said. "We don't want to just be a cookie-cutter convention city. We want people to experience north and south Omaha, too — the black experience in north Omaha, and the immigrant experience that goes all the way back to the beginning of South Omaha."

The concept was included in a revision of the turnback tax bill that the Legislature passed in 2007. That bill increased the amount of sales tax revenue that would return to Omaha. Ashford and Sen. Ernie Chambers of Omaha said Chambers would have blocked the bill without the north and south Omaha tourism provision.

"I cannot allow that kind of thing to happen if there's no money going to the part of town that's most in need," Chambers said.

He and Ashford worked out language that sends money to areas with high concentrations of poverty. It does not say "south Omaha" and "north Omaha"; that would be unconstitutional, Ashford said. But south and north Omaha both meet the law's definition of "high concentration of poverty."

The way the bill was worded in 2007, it would have unintentionally left out south Omaha, Ashford said. State Sen. John Synowiecki of Omaha and Ashford sponsored a bill this year that fixed that problem.

Three-member committees in north and south Omaha will review proposals and decide how the money will be spent. Each committee will include the Omaha City Council member and Douglas County Board member who represent the area. Currently, that is Frank Brown and Chris Rodgers for north Omaha and Garry Gernandt and Mike Boyle for south Omaha.

The two committee members in each area will appoint the third person, who must live in the area. The third members have not been appointed.

The council and County Board members on the committees said they would get together and discuss it, now that the money has started to come in.

Brown has a nominee: Chambers.

"What better person to watch the dollars than Senator Chambers?" Brown said. "What better person to help with the decisions than the person who made the bill happen?"

Chambers said he would consider it.

"I don't think there's a person in my community, not even my worst enemy, who would say I'm dishonest, untrustworthy or wouldn't take good care of that money," he said.

Rodgers said Chambers would be a worthy committee member but said he would prefer the appointment go to an African-American woman so that the committee would not consist only of men.

The law sets only basic requirements to guide the committees. The committee members are to solicit project ideas from the public. They must hold public hearings in the neighborhoods. They are supposed to research potential projects, then make final decisions on the annual distribution of funding.

No proposal has been made. Love's Jazz & Arts Center, on North 24th Street, and El Museo Latino, on South 24th Street, have been mentioned as examples of the types of sites that might qualify.

Rodgers said the first place that should be developed is the Malcolm X Birthsite in north Omaha.

Brown said that it was too early to specify projects and that hundreds of nonprofit organizations would seek funding and might qualify. He said people proposing projects would have to show a record of financial responsibility and demonstrate that their proposals could succeed.

Boyle said he would seek the counsel of Gary Kastrick, an Omaha South High School teacher who, with his students, has developed an Omaha history museum at the school. Boyle also wants to consult with city planners. And he wants the general public to weigh in as much as possible.

"People will have some good ideas," Boyle said. "There are a lot of strong neighborhood groups in south Omaha. I would like to hear from everybody and see what they want to do with the money."

What?

Well way to sell our country and American Heritage down the road!

If I want to see Mexico Ill go to Mexico! or maybe ill drive down the street.