Omaha Exploration

The town of South Omaha saw its population explode from 600 to 8,000 within four years of the founding of the stockyards. The first businesses were constructed along N Street where the Livestock Exchange Building was located. Just east, the 24th Street corridor would become the center of commerce due, in part, to the streetcar stops that would transport riders from Omaha to the north.

Perhaps the most important intersection in the business district was 24th and N Streets where the Livestock National Bank was constructed in 1926. After the building was demolished in the 1980s, it was replaced with a parking lot.

The parking lot sitting at the heart of the community has become an important gathering point for those in the community. It continued to serve as the town square which attracted a large number of people for events such a as Cinco de Mayo.

Since at least the 1980s there have been a few community development projects that aimed to improve sidewalks, install benches and plant trees at the entrance of the parking lot that is called Plaza de la Raza. While those improvements helped buffer the area from the street noise along the busy South 24th Street business district, they didn’t do much else.

In the last few years, a vision has been established for a part of the city that was hit hard by the pandemic. The project includes three phases, the first is a park called Adelante which aims to create an accessible space for families. Features of the park will include an amphitheater from which concerts will be held, playgrounds, green spaces, seating and artwork. The second phase includes a parking garage and retail space. The third phase includes the creation of the Latino Economic Development Council which will offer workforce development opportunities.

Half of the funding for the $50M project will come from the North-South Omaha economic recovery grants with the rest expected to come from private donations. The project is expected to begin by the end of the year. Its goal is to drive tourism to the area and attract new development that will foster economic growth to the historic business district which has largely been forgotten as the city grew to the west.

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Until next time, keep exploring!

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