 90-minute
public hearing attended by about 70 local residents was held this
week to discuss the Omaha Performing Arts Society's proposed design
of a new Arts Center in downtown Omaha. The meeting, which was
attended by the owners of the four historical buildings that the
society would like to demolish for the project, local
preservationists, architects and concerned citizens, resulted in a
recommendation that the Performing Arts Center be built alongside
the existing buildings.
 The
Omaha
Landmarks Heritage Commission voted in support of the
development of the center but also wants to preserve a local
historical landmark, the Christian Specht Building. The city
advisory commission also recommended the preservation of the
neighboring buildings, all of which were built at the
turn-of-the-century.
Society leaders say they cannot build the center they envision and
still preserve the buildings. The Omaha
Planning Board will meet again on January 9th to discuss the
Arts Society's proposal and take into consideration the
commission's recommendations.
The Performing Arts Society, who is to take over management and
renovation of the Orpheum on March 1st, says the two projects are
tied together and if the site for the new hall is still in the air
then, they could abandon the entire deal.
John Gottschalk, president of the society clarified how the two
plans tie together:
- The society was formed to provide a new performance hall and
took over the Orpheum
project reluctantly at the city's request.
- A full two square blocks are needed to provide an appropriate
pedestal for the concert hall and leave enough room for a future
theater for operas and stage plays.
- Leaving the older buildings on the corner of the property
would diminish the design alternatives for a signature performing
arts building.
 During the public hearing this week, an assistant professor of
architecture at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, presented three
alternative designs that would incorporate the historical buildings
alongside a 170,000-square-foot performing arts center.
The society, however, does not believe the buildings can co-exist
with their plans. Their vision is to build something similar to the
Kennedy
Center in Washington, D.C. or the Lincoln
Center in New York. The square block area where the buildings
now stand would be designated as an outdoor venue, possibly an
amphitheater.
Three
or four other locations east of 24th Street have been considered
for the project but when a deal was worked out earlier this year
with Pinnacle
Foods to acquire the old Swanson plant that sits directly
across from the Gene Leahy Mall, the search for an appropriate
location was over.
City officials said the earliest the City Council could approve the
plan is February 26th, just three days before the society is to
take over the Orpheum. In the meantime, the society plans on
meeting with the building owners to see if their differences can be
worked out. 
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