Benson Alliance
Gets Underway

Erasmus Benson would be proud. 
The community he started, just northwest of Omaha, is making a new start just as he did in 1887.  Benson will lead the way as it builds a new Alliance that will become the roadmap for the rest of the City.

An alliance focuses the strength of several neighborhoods through a partnership of neighborhood associations, community organizations, and business groups working together to promote the community’s economic and social vitality.

The Benson Business Association laid the groundwork with a Place Game and a Design Charrette and is now joining a new neighborhood initiative that will create a comprehensive neighborhood plan for a much expanded Benson geographic area.

The initiative will also produce an Alliance Model Process that will be used for the other 13 Alliances identified in the Urban Design Element.

The process will be used to formulate the guiding principles and methods for Alliance planning to be replicated in other areas of the city.  Methods for bringing stakeholders together, pooling resources, developing an action plan to address community needs and strengthening community partnerships will all be studied to develop best practices.

The formation of the alliance is the second major announcement from Omaha by Design to implement the 73 Urban Design Element recommendations. The Urban Design Element, now a part of the City’s master Plan, resulted from an 18-month community-wide comprehensive urban design plan organized by Omaha by Design, Mayor Fahey and the City’s Planning Department.

Mayor Fahey shares a laugh with the crowd at the Benson Alliance rollout

The Design Element contains three major sections.

• Green Omaha : deals with landscape and our natural environment

• Civic Omaha: addresses the built environment and civic infrastructure, and

• Neighborhood Omaha : focuses on preservation, improving newer neighborhoods and creating walkable new neighborhoods as the City continues to grow.

A partnership that will include civic and community leaders, businesses, consultants and the academic community, will facilitate the work. Dr. Del Weber, co-chair of the urban design plan for Omaha by Design, and Steve Jensen, City planning director, will lead the planning process and co-chair the Benson Alliance Advisory Committee.

Benson business owners Janet Wetovick-Bily of Petals by Janet and Greg Bourne of Greg Bourne Clocks.

The Advisory Committee will bring together diverse neighborhood and community organizations with varying levels of organizational capacity, economic concerns and social perspectives to identify the assets and liabilities of the community and will regularly evaluate the Benson Alliance development. The committee will also assist with a series of area-wide community input sessions and design workshops to identify issues and common problems, suggest potential solutions, and map area assets.

Bill Henry, retired First National Bank executive will serve as Honorary Chairman of the Advisory committee. Henry is well known in the neighborhood for coaching this years championship summer swim team at Gallagher Park.

Representatives of neighborhood associations, local businesses, social service agencies and other community organizations located within the Alliance boundaries will make up the Benson Alliance Advisory Committee

Bill Henry—Advisory Committee Honorary Chairman

The new alliance stretches from Western Avenue on the south, Sorensen Parkway on the north, Fontenelle Boulevard on the east and 72nd Street on the west.  The area includes more than 19,000 households.

UNO’s College of Public Affairs and Community Service faculty, staff and students will conduct research activities and demographic analysis.   Dr. Robert F. Blair, Associate Professor of Public Administration and Director of Urban Studies, will serve as UNO’s project coordinator for a neighborhood survey, an inventory of housing conditions, and a demographic and economic study.

Gould Evans Associates, LC of Kansas City, Missouri is the consulting firm selected to assist with the Alliance Model process and Benson Alliance Plan.  David Knopick, AICP, Gould Evans, will be the project director.  Bob Peters, Robert Peters Company, and Robert Griffin, Ehrhart Griffin & Associates, two Omaha firms will assist Gould Evans in this project.

“This is an exciting time for neighborhood planning effort in Omaha and the Benson Alliance area specifically,” said Knopick, “This project will set a foundation for future neighborhood alliance planning efforts throughout the city by forming effective partnerships and engaging citizens directly in planning and implementing plans for the future of their neighborhoods,”

Dr. Robert F. Blair, Director of UNO’s Urban Studies Program

“This project will provide Benson neighborhood residents the opportunity to provide their input to the Alliance process,” said Del Weber, “We are grateful to all of the businesses, organizations and individuals who are providing the financial support to make it possible.”

Sponsors of the Benson Alliance include Alegent Health Community Benefit Trust, State of Nebraska Investment Finance Authority, the City of Omaha, Commercial Federal Bank, Great Western Bank, Omaha by Design and numerous individual businesses located within the Benson Alliance area.

Work on the Alliance Model Process begins immediately. The plan will be presented to the Planning Board and City Council for approval in 12 months.

Visit this website www.omahabydesign.org often for progress reports, ways to participate and community meeting dates.

Steve Jensen, City Planning Director and David Knopick, Vice President of Gould Evans discuss the project.

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