Omaha Exploration

Architect Frank (Nes) Latenser of John Latenser & Sons designed the flying saucer-shaped building at 1818 Dodge St. Its futuristic shape was likely inspired by the space race, The Jetsons and other events occurring in the 1960s. 

The saucer was constructed on a former parking lot for Omaha National Bank at a cost of $400k in 1968. It had seven or eight drive thru windows each serviced by a teller via closed-circuit television instead of having one assigned to each window. 

Its life as a bank was limited to just six years as the building was listed as being available for lease in 1974. It should be mentioned that Omaha National Bank also occupied the former New York Life Insurance Building at 1650 Farnam Street from 1909-1972. The bank renamed it the Omaha Building and is currently the home to Kutak Rock. We’ll explore that magnificent structure another time.

After vacating the saucer building on 19th and Dodge, it served a number of other businesses including Western Union and Black Hills Energy. Once the energy company which also owned the attached high-rise relocated in 2011, the saucer sat empty.

Meanwhile, NuStyle Development which had a reputation for developing overlooked properties downtown, purchased both buildings in 2012. They renovated the high-rise that had been home to Travelers Insurance into The Slate Apartments while envisioning the saucer as a restaurant or coffee shop. 

The saucer remained empty until 2015 when a nonprofit called Bike Union whose aim was to train and mentor at-risk youth was looking for a space in which to operate.

Founded by Miah Sommer when he was the marketing manager at Trek Bicycle stores, he aimed to hire young adults who had aged out of the foster care system. The Bike Union served as a place where a customer could get their bicycle repaired while enjoying a cup of coffee.

The trainees would then work as bicycle mechanics and/or baristas. In addition to learning those skills and earning a paycheck, they were mentored and taught a combination of technical and soft skills in addition to financial literacy, cooking and nutrition, mindfulness meditation and academic tutoring.

NuStyle liked its mission so much that it offered it a good deal on the lease. It didn’t hurt that many tenants at the apartment complex were cyclists so the shop was considered an added amenity. 

The Bike Union changed its name in 2022 to Astute Coffee after it dropped the bicycle repair component of the business as it was taking too much time away from its core mission of providing workforce development. Astute Coffe opened a second location in the Atlas Apartments at 29th and California Streets, another NuStyle renovation project.

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