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In older parts of many U.S. cities, designers and owners shared a civic vision.

Buildings at the front property line define the street. Streets lead up to vistas of important buildings. Tree-lined boulevards connect park spaces and help define districts and neighborhoods. Many of Omaha’s downtown and midtown buildings follow the traditional pattern and are built right up to the sidewalk, enclosing the space of the street. Capitol Avenue is an example of a street that follows traditional ideas about how a street should lead to an important building. The symmetrical façade of Central High School, which occupies the site of the first Nebraska state capitol, is the focus of the view looking west on Capitol Avenue. Omaha also has the park and boulevard system, created in the eastern part of the City a century ago, another form of traditional civic design. The new automobile geography of cities with many lanes of traffic and extensive parking lots has broken up this old civic vision. Cities everywhere are seeking to restore a civic design consensus in the older parts of cities and extend something comparable to important places in newer areas. The nine goals of Civic Omaha seek to preserve and restore traditional civic elements in the areas of greatest civic importance an d extend such design concepts to key portions of Omaha that have been developed more recently without the benefit of a civic design tradition.

A three-dimensional map of Omaha shows how the region’s hills and valleys relate to Omaha’s system of streets, laid out at right angles to form a grid.

1. Delineating the Areas of Civic Importance Omaha’s image should be defined by its built environment as well as by its green setting. The City should select the locations within the City that are of primary importance in shaping its physical image, and pursue objectives and policies to preserve and develop these places of civic importance in ways that help Omaha to be recognized as a first choice City.

2. Preserving and Creating Distinctive Civic Places There are some distinctive places tha t help to define Omaha’s image, and there are opportunities to improve these places and create more. Omaha should promote the preservation and creation of these places through legislation and public investment.

(LEFT) A scene along the Keystone Trail showing the Papio’s waters dammed to hold more water and a new park along the water’s edge.

This artist’s impression illustrates how several Omaha by Design policies can come together to create a new urban neighborhood. From a balcony on an apartment building, suggested as being located on 78th Street between Dodge and Cass, the view looks east across a new lake and park where Cole Creek meets the Little Papio. In the background are more apartment buildings, part of the park-once mixed use neighborhood proposed near the Crossroads Mall. An aerial view of this concept, seen from the opposite direction, is seen here.

3. Streetscapes Street lights, traffic signals, traffic information signs, parking signs, street identification signs, street trees, and street and sidewalk materials are important components of the City’s image. All elements of streetscape within the delineated areas of civic importance should contribute to harmonious and consistent designs for these areas.

(RIGHT) New streetscape installed along Capitol Avenue downtown. All a reas of Civic Importance need the same attention to detail.

4. Major Commercial Corridors and Intersections Major commercial corridors should be designed to present a coherent image for the motorist and a safe and manageable environment for motorists and pedestrians.

(ABOVE) Typical Strip Development

(BELOW) Walkable Commercial Clusters

Land-use and zoning policies should be changed over time along major commercial corridors.

5. Pedestrian-Oriented, Mixed Use Centers Commercial activities in Omaha should occur in park-once, mixed- use centers rather than in continuous strips along arterial streets.

(LEFT) Where Dodge and 72nd Street cross is an important civic location in Omaha with the potential to become a major mixed-use center, with offices grouped around a new square, retail related to the Crossroads Mall, and apartments and townhouses around a new lake and park where Cole Creek meets the Little Papio.

6. Conservation of Buildings Existing buildings should be recognized as a potential resource to be preserved as heritage, as useful parts of the City’s built environment, or to reinforce a community’s sense of place

(LEFT) Omaha’s older buildings are not just a historic heritage, but also a valuable resource. Often re-using an old building makes more sense than building a new one.

This rendering of the view looking north along the I-475 freeway shows how illuminating the bridges could improve the experience of driving along this corridor at night.

7. Lighting Significant Structures The City should encourage effective lighting of significant structures in Areas of Civic Importance so that these illuminations reinforce the City’s distinctive image. This lighting should be energy efficient and should be carefully directed to minimize light spill beyond the structure being illuminated.

8. Public Art The City should encourage the placement of public art in appropriate locations and the incorporation of art in public structures.

A recent example of public art in Omaha

9. General Quality of Public Design The City should seek the highest quality of design in the structures it constructs and significant buildings open to the public that are financed by the City.

Omaha’s new Hilton Hotel, partly funded by City investment, is an example of good public design.

The new regional headquarters of the National Park Service is an example of a well-designed public building.

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