The National Park Service’s Midwest headquarters building on Omaha’s riverfront is a showcase for green design. (Photo credit: Tom Kessler, Kessler Photography). Sustainable Development New Area of Focus Omaha by Design is expanding its efforts into the greening of the metropolitan area with a new focus on sustainable development practices. “The issue of sustainability is timely locally as well as nationally,” said Rex Fisher, president of Qwest Nebraska and chair of the Omaha by Design Advisory Committee. “It plays a critical role in the future of our city and directly impacts the work we do daily as an organization.” Founded in 2001 as Lively Omaha, Omaha by Design works with the public and private sectors to improve the physical and built environment throughout the metropolitan area. Projects center on three components: Green Omaha, which seeks to preserve and enhance the city’s natural setting and public park system; Civic Omaha, which seeks to define and improve the city’s civic places and public image; and Neighborhood Omaha, which seeks to preserve and enhance the city’s residential neighborhoods. These three components comprise the Urban Design Element of Omaha’s master plan, which establishes the city’s long-range policies, goals and standards as a guide for its physical development. Omaha by Design will focus its efforts on sustainability as it relates to best practices for buildings, the environment and design materials, said Connie Spellman, director of Omaha by Design. The first step will be to gain a comprehensive understanding of sustainable development projects and activities already under way in the city and surrounding area. Pockets of sustainable activity dot the city map. For example, on the building and design materials front, the new National Park Service’s Midwest headquarters building on Omaha’s riverfront is a showcase for green design. It was constructed using recycled building materials, solar panels, an efficient heating and cooling system, erosion control measures and landscaping that doesn’t require watering. The building received the federal government’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) designation. On the environment front, Omaha, Bellevue and Lincoln are participants in the Cool Cities initiative, which seeks to heighten sensitivity to environmental issues by encouraging officials to sign climate protection covenants. The program also recommends that cities maintain healthy urban forests and promote alternative transportation options such as bicycle trails, public transit and carpooling. Also, the city’s Clean Solutions for Omaha! initiative – a federally-mandated plan aimed at controlling the discharge of mixed sewage and stormwater into the Missouri River and Papillion Creek tributaries – has the potential to employ low-impact development and conservation design techniques to enhance the environment and recreational areas while complying with regulatory requirements. For more information about the work of Omaha by Design, contact Spellman at connie@omahabydesign.org, or visit the web at www.omahabydesign.org. [Main Page]