B2B Omaha - June/July 2021

JUNE · JULY 2021 | U.S. $3.25

MAKING A STATEMENT VAHALLAN’S ARTISAN APPROACH C.A.D.E.

CONSTRUCTION. ARCHITECTURE. DESIGN. ENGINEERING.

CONSTRUCTING A RENOVATED PLAN SUPPLY SHORTAGES PUT DEVELOPERS IN A TIGHT SPOT

DRIVEN BY TECHNOLOGY ENGINEERS SPEED UP PROJECT TIMELINES

02 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

it’s about all of us.

Connect With Your City

EXECUTIVE publisher Todd Lemke

CREATIVE creative director Matt Wieczorek

vice president Greg Bruns

senior graphic designer Derek Joy

associate publisher Bill Sitzmann

graphic designer II Mady Besch

EDITORIAL managing editor Daisy Hutzell-Rodman

photographers Katie Anderson Keith Binder Scott Drickey Ariel Fried Sarah Lemke Jeremy Allen Wieczorek

U.S.

FEBRUA RY · MARCH $3.25 2018

A LWA

JANU ARY/ FEBR YS LO CA

L, AL WA

YS BE AU

UAR Y 2018

TIFUL

INCUBATORS & ACCELERATORS

OmahaHome

INCLUDED WITH AN

Omaha Magazine

LEGISLATING HEALTH CARE SOLUTIONS E.D. BELLIS

SUBSCRIPTION!

ETHAN AND SUSAN BONDELID SOCIAL MAVENS

INTO THE MYSTIC NEW AGE MARKET

LOCA L DESIG

NERS ' FAVO

RITE ROOM

S // ARCH ITECT

PAUL ERIK

NELS ON'S HOME

OFFIC E // THE GRAN D

REVE AL OF

A YEAR LONG

RENO VATIO

$19.95

OMAHA MAGAZINE—1 YEAR

8 Issues + Bonuses

$29.95

OMAHA MAGAZINE—2 YEARS

16 Issues + Bonuses

$14.95

B2B MAGAZINE—1 YEAR

associate editor Linda Persigehl contributors Leo Adam Biga Chris Bowling David Brown Chris Hatch Brody Hilgenkamp Kim Carpenter Sara Locke Charlie Litton Lisa Lukecart Katrina Markel Scott Stewart Deborah Ward INFORMATION advertising information 402.884.2000

Bonuses

Customers receive two of our bonus issues—Best of Omaha Results and Faces of Omaha—for each year as a paid subscriber.

N

senior editor Tara Spencer

2018

FACES of

subscribe online omahamagazine.com/ pages/subscribe

SALES executive vice president sales & marketing Gil Cohen sales coach Ed Cochran branding specialists Dawn Dennis George Idelman assistant to the publisher Sandy Matson senior sales coordinator Alicia Hollins contributing branding specialists Jillian Dunn Mary Hiatt Gwen Lemke

OMAHA

28,755 TREES & COUNTING Omaha Magazine, by partnering with PrintReleaf, has reforested 28,755 standard trees since April 2015.

B2B Magazine is published six times annually by Omaha Magazine, LTD, P.O. Box 461208, Omaha NE 68046-1208.

Telephone: 402.884.2000; fax 402.884.2001. Subscription rates: $12.95 for 4 issues (one year), $19.95 for 8 issues (two years). Multiple subscriptions at different rates are available.

No whole or part of the contents herein may be reproduced without prior written permission of B2B Omaha Magazine, excepting individually copyrighted articles and photographs. Unsolicited manuscripts are accepted, however no responsibility will be assumed for such solicitations.

OPERATIONS accounting/operations manager Kyle Fisher ad traffic manager David Trouba digital manager Megan Bartholomew distribution manager Damian Ingersoll

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 03

TABLE OF CONTENTS MAIN FEATURE

36

RENOVATED PLANS

SUPPLY SHORTAGES PUT DEVELOPERS IN A TIGHT SPOT FEATURES

22

STEP BY STEP

THE STEADY TRANSFORMATION OF OMAHA

26

ARCHITECTURAL DREAMS

ONE CAREER PUSHES OTHERS

30

DRIVEN BY TECHNOLOGY ENGINEERS EMBRACE NEW METHODS

DEPARTMENTS

06 BIZ+GIVING

10 IN THE OFFICE

14 omAHA!

08 HOW I ROLL

12 LEADERS

16 ON THE RISE

SPECPRO

ALLEY POYNER MACCHIETTO

COLUMNS

04 FROM THE EDITOR THE CADE ISSUE

40 OMAHA CVB UNIQUE HOTELS

40 OMAHA CHAMBER SPRINGTIME IN OMAHA

ARCHRIVAL

ROUNDTABLE

SPECIAL SECTIONS

18 CADE ISSUE

SPONSORED CONTENT

VAHALLAN

SARAH POURSHARAFEDDIN

JUNE · JULY 2021 |

U.S. $3.25

MAKING A STATEMENT

VAHALLAN’S ARTISAN APPROACH

C.A.D.E.

CONSTRUCTION. ARCHITECTURE. DESIGN. ENGINEERING.

CONSTRUCTING A RENOVATED PLAN SUPPLY SHORTAGES PUT DEVELOPERS IN A TIGHT SPOT

DRIVEN BY TECHNOLOGY ENGINEERS SPEED UP PROJECT TIMELINES

ABOUT THE COVER

Dan Nelson, owner of Vahallan, in his wallpaper production room.

04 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

FROM THE EDITOR

CONSTRUCTING A GREAT ISSUE S

ummer brings to mind construction for many. I know as I travel I-80 in the summer for vacation, I nearly always run into a strech of road where I must slow down or stop for road crews. It’s prime season for those in the building industry, and that’s why we chose our summer issue for CADE.

HONORED TO SUPPORT BUSINESS, BIG AND SMALL. At FNBO, we’re here for your business.

Thank you to our customers for naming us a B2B Best Bank. It’s an honor to be recognized for our dedication, integrity, and service by the businesses we proudly support. It’s what you can expect from the great big, small bank.

There’s a lot of new construction going on around Omaha. Two former shopping malls, Crossroads and Oak View, have been bought, with plans underway for new development in these areas. The UNMC and Nebraska Medical Center are developing several areas in the midtown area, and the 204th Street corridor, once a throughway to points into or out of the metro, is now becoming developed between Bennington and Gretna. One feature story tells readers about several of these developments.

At the same time, there have been shortages in the construction industry. Lumber, particularly, has been spoken about in the news lately, as prices have tripled in many areas, causing the cost of building a new home to increase, on average, from $20,000-$36,000. This is causing local developers the inability to lock in a price at the time of estimation, which leaves profit margins in the air. Another feature in this issue touches on how the construction industry has fared over the past year.

2021 Winner

Member FDIC

While the construction crews are scrambling to find lumber, the engineering crews are constantly advancing their technologies to speed up timelines. Particularly popular right now are drones that take photos of the site to aid land surveyors and engineers. A third feature touches on these drones, and some other technologies, that are helping engineering work smarter and faster.

Daisy Hutzell-Rodman is the managing editor of Omaha Publications.

She can be reached at daisy@ omahapublications.com

@OmahaMagazine

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 05

While all construction was affected, the last year was especially topsy-turvy for homebuilders. Our roundtable writer spoke with three businessmen who have firsthand knowledge of running buildng companies about what they saw over the past 12 months.

Architecture is a popular fictional career. It combines art and science, and many architects are well-paid. But many students who start with an architecture major don’t finish the degree. What degrees do they end up in, and what happens to those professions? How these students become architects or not is the subject of last feature.

The opposite also happens. Sarah Poursharafeddin was a theater major at the University of Nebraska at Omaha when she began working at an HVAC firm. She connected with this profession, and now owns Environmental Quality Experts.

It’s summer, and that meants it is a perfect time to get out and enjoy the weather with a bike ride or walk. This edition’s How I Roll is about three women at Alley Poyner Macchietto Architecture who appreiate nice weather for a bike ride, but bicycle to work year-round, no matter the weather.

SpecPro Vice President Gary Martin and his wife, Connie, have a special organization to which they give. Bethlehem House is run by a friend, and over the years, the Martins have helped the organization in many ways. Yes, the couple donate money, but they have also given time. SpecPro employees, specifically, have helped take care of Bethlehem House, repairing and updating it as time allows.

These articles and more can be found inside this edition.

B2B

Connie Martin

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 07

07

BIZ+GIVING | STORY BY CHRIS BOWLING | PHOTO BY BILL SITZMANN

UP TO SPEC

LOCAL COMPANY HELPS NONPROFIT BUILDING

C

onnie Martin has a special scrapbook.

Like a lot of keepsakes, it’s lined with loving notes and pictures of smiling parents and their kids at Christmas, Easter, or Halloween.

But these aren’t memories to pull out at family get-togethers. They are photos of women who’ve stayed at Bethlehem House, a housing and social service program for mothers in crisis, and they remind Connie why it’s important to give.

“I have to tell you, the pictures, the thank-you notes, the little quotes from ladies saying how thankful they are to have somebody there [means a lot],” Connie said. “Of course they don’t know me from the man on the moon, but we’re there helping and supporting them so that they can have a better life.”

WHENEVER SPECPRO’S CREW HAS DOWNTIME, THEY FIX UP BETHLEHEM HOUSE, A TWO-STORY BRICK BUILDING IN SOUTH OMAHA, BUILT IN THE 1940S TO HOUSE A COVENANT OF NUNS. WHETHER IT’S WIRING, PLUMBING OR FIXING A DOOR THAT WON’T SHUT, THEY KEEP THE PLACE UP AND RUNNING. Connie said she and her husband, Gary, were raised to give. Gary is vice president of SpecPro, a commercial skylight and wall panel maintenance and repair company based out of Omaha. Connie’s mother was a nurse, and Gary was raised by a single mom. Over the years, they’ve supported Habitat for Humanity, the Omaha Children’s Museum, Sienna Francis House, and the Salvation Army.

When Gina Tomes, the daughter of longtime friends of the Martins, opened Bethlehem House in 2005 they immediately connected with her vision.

“We like the idea that the Bethlehem house really focuses on helping women help themselves to get to a better place for both themselves and their baby or children,” Connie said. “That really resonates in our hearts.”

Bethlehem House has room for 12 mothers, with each person staying an average of eight to 12 months, said Tomes, family life director at Bethlehem House. Through education, case work, and other programming, Bethlehem House helps them find stability.

“These are women that are breaking intergenerational cycles of poverty, addiction, abuse…everything,” Tomes said. “We’re really creating a foundation for their life where they’re able to thrive, go to college, buy their first homes, even, and just really tackle the world and achieve their goals.”

That costs a lot in time, energy, and money for the nonprofit’s staff of five. Fortunately they have help from several donors, but none quite compare to the Martins, who’ve given about $70,000 in the last 16 years, Tomes said. But they don’t just give money. Whenever SpecPro’s crew has downtime, they fix up Bethlehem House, a two-story brick building in South Omaha, built in the 1940s to house a covenant of nuns. Whether it’s wiring, plumbing, or fixing a door that won’t shut, they keep the place up and running.

Literally and figuratively, Bethlehem House stands on the generosity of people like the Martins, and it’s the reason the nonprofit can be ambitious.

“I ALWAYS SAY OMAHA IS ABSOLUTELY RICH IN LOVE, RESOURCES, AND COMMUNITY, AND THAT SHOWS OUR FAMILIES WHAT LOVE IS.” -GINA TOMES The nonprofit is adding 16 three-bedroom apartments so it can serve more mothers. It also started an after-care program to serve mothers for years after they leave.

“It’s families and companies like this that define Omaha,” Tomes said. “I always say Omaha is absolutely rich in love, resources, and community, and that shows our families what love is...It shows them what unconditional love is and what support is and [what it means to] walk through this journey during difficult times. It truly is what the world needs.”

Visit specpro-inc.com for more information.

B2B

08 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

08

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

HOW I ROLL | STORY BY KATRINA MARKEL | PHOTO BY BILL SITZMANN

PUTTING A NEW SPIN ON THE DAILY COMMUTE

THE CYCLISTS OF ALLEY POYNER MACCHIETTO ARCHITECTURE

W

ellness and fitness are values woven throughout the company culture at Alley Poyner Macchietto Architecture, a design firm headquartered in north downtown Omaha. Bicycling, in particular, is ingrained in the company ethos.

“I guess it all roots from Michael Alley’s love for biking and how he’s just gotten more people to do it and join his craziness,” said architectural designer Sarah Schneider.

Alley is one of the company founders and a passionate cyclist.

“He actually gave up a car to cycle to work and he cycles year-round,” said Erin Giannangelo, a photographer on the firm’s marketing team.

Schneider and Giannangelo, along with historic preservation specialist Caitlin Benton, form a trio of women cyclists at the center of the APMA cycling tradition.

“It’s always open to anyone, but I guess Erin, Caitlin, and I are the usual three,” Schneider said.

It’s not uncommon for “the usual three” to commute on their bikes.

“People are encouraged to ride bikes if they want to. We have facilities for people to shower and do all of that if they want to ride in,” Benton said.

An Omaha native, Benton started bicycling while attending college in Chicago. In 2013, she moved back to the city following graduate school at Cornell University in upstate New York. She didn’t have a car for the first year and would sometimes borrow her sister’s car, but “to get to work I was mostly riding my bike.”

“It’s a great vehicle to get around. You can cover ground and see your surroundings in a whole new way. You build a sense of community when routinely biking by businesses and your neighbors.

It’s also wonderful exercise, social, and rewarding,” said Giannangelo, another Omaha native who first started cycling as a student at Colorado State University.

Schneider, who is from Norfolk, Virginia, also started biking in college as a way to get across the Iowa State University campus in Ames.

“I try to bike [to work] as much as possible. I only live like a mile away, so it’s super silly to get in my car,” Schneider said.

All three women participate in cycling events with coworkers, including the Corporate Cycling Challenge, National Bike to Work Day, and the Taco Ride, a weekly gathering that travels along the Wabash Trace from Council Bluffs to Mineola, Iowa, and back. The firm also has its own informal ride dubbed “ROMAHOAK” because the peloton starts at the Omaha office and bikes more than 50 miles to its Red Oak, Iowa, office. The women all mentioned that the ROMAHOAK ride isn’t competitive and cyclists of all levels are welcome to participate.

“I met my husband [Robbie Benton] for the first time because he did one of the ROMAHOAK rides that we opened up to the public,” said Benton, who now cycles regularly with her husband and their 4-year-old son.

This spring, Giannangelo was a driving force behind a fitness challenge in which the staff combined its cycling, running, and walking miles to virtually travel across the United States. Firm partner Martin Kluck has been known to lead cycling tours of the company’s projects at historic, downtown buildings.

“BIKING IS A FANTASTIC WAY TO MEET PEOPLE AND HAVE TIME FOR MEANINGFUL DIALOGUE. ROMAHOAK IS A GREAT EXAMPLE OF TEAM BONDING.” -ERIN GIANNANGELO “Biking is a fantastic way to meet people and have time for meaningful dialogue. ROMAHOAK is a great example of team bonding,” Giannangelo said.

Schneider started as a student intern with the firm and said that the bicycling culture was part of what attracted her to the company. She thought, “I’ll be able to bike all the time and I won’t have to bike alone.”

Visit alleypoyner.com for more information.

B2B

SCHNEIDER AND GIANNANGELO, ALONG WITH HISTORIC PRESERVATION SPECIALIST CAITLIN BENTON, FORM A TRIO OF WOMEN CYCLISTS AT THE CENTER OF THE APMA CYCLING TRADITION.

From left: Caitlin Benton, Erin Giannangelo, and Sarah Schneider

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 11

11

IN THE OFFICE | STORY BY CHRIS HATCH | PHOTOS PROVIDED

THE UNDENIABLE SIREN SONG OF ARCHRIVAL CALLING OUT TO CREATIVITY

“I WAS SO PROUD OF IT AND I’M STILL PROUD OF IT AND IT WAS SO DIFFERENT AT THE TIME. NO UNIFORMITY, ALL THE PAGES WERE DIFFERENT. ALL MY ENERGY, EVERY OUNCE OF CREATIVITY I HAD WENT INTO THAT. I REMEMBER THE GOOSEBUMPS I GOT WHEN THAT CAME BACK FROM THE PRINTER.” -CLINT RUNGE

T

he German word wunderkammer means “cabinet of curiosities,” an idea that arose in 1500s Europe as repositories for all manner of wondrous and exotic objects. Those who follow the wunderkammer that flows through the heart of Archrival’s offices like an atrial artery might find themselves drifting back through a wooden time portal, learning about the beginnings of what has become one of Lincoln’s premier youth culture agencies.

That’s not a mistake.

“I’ve always really liked the wunderkammer. The stories that are found inside the objects in the wall,” said Archrival CEO and Founder Clint Runge. “There’s a bit of warmth to all these different chapters of Archrival that are found along the way.”

He pointed to the upper right hand corner of the cabinet, eyes suddenly glittering.

“When I see that book up there, in that very top corner. That piece, at that time period was the single coolest thing I’d ever made.” Runge leaned forward and talked about one of the earliest pieces of marketing materials he had created, where it was placed in the wooden trophy box to serve as inspiration some decades later.

“I was so proud of it and I’m still proud of it,” he continued. “And it was so different at the time.

No uniformity, all the pages were different. All my energy, every ounce of creativity I had went into that. I remember the goosebumps I got when that came back from the printer.”

Underneath the asphalt umbrella of four lanes heading East and West, nestled in the hub of the Railyard district in Lincoln, Archrival and their offices continue with that same level of nonconformity and passion.

The short brick building has cheese-grater metal steps, and the singular front door has one word on it: “Hello.”

Next to the front desk, a few steps past the neon company logo and the custom-branded arcade game, visitors can follow the exposed bricks and silver ductwork past a freshly constructed podcast studio—completed in an effort to counteract some of the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic—into the thick of the office.

“[It’s] something that represents who we are,” said Amy Filipi, the head of communications at Archrival. “A work hard/play hard space that can evolve as we continue to evolve.”

Every bit as illuminating as the multitude of windows that let in cityscape and sun in equal parts are the murals that adorn the walls. Murals from San Antonio and Portland featuring the canine grins of the company’s many dog friends and pingpong-playing robots.

“We wanted a flexible space that reflects our values,” Runge said. “We do a lot of creative problem solving, so it’s great if our space reflects a place that creatives would want to be in, be a part of, do their best work from. We wanted to invest in a space that felt like it could be anywhere in the world.”

The art at Archrival doesn’t stay restricted to the inside of the building. In the alley is the neon, benign black hole of a full-building mural, designed to gravitationally pull at the frontal cortex of artists and dreamers and creatives.

“The alley mural is great.” Runge said, beaming.

“It’s a part of the fabric of the Haymarket that’s fun to explore. Part of the fact that I know that it’s accepted is that no one has tagged it. No one has come back over the top of it. That says something in and of itself, right?”

Visit archrival.com for more information.

“We teamed up with BVH [Architecture],” Runge said. “Getting to work closely with them allowed me to do what I’m good at, which is some of the design thinking. We ended up with something better than we would have, independently.”

B2B

12 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

12

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

LEADERS | STORY BY SARA LOCKE | PHOTOS CONTRIBUTED

EXPERTLY BUILT

THE PROCESS, PITFALLS, AND PERKS OF BUILDING IN 2021

O

maha’s capacity for growth is exponential, and the upward trajectory of the past year has proven that no hurdle is too high for the creative minds behind this city’s architecture. B2B had the pleasure of learning a little more about the process from Greg Key, president of Lueder Construction; Brandon Myers, owner of Trademark Homes Inc.; and Rob Ryan, president of RMR Building Group.

B2B: What are some common misconceptions or mistakes you’ve witnessed during the building process?

GK: Business owners who haven’t had experience with building can be surprised by the amount of time it takes to get to the build stage of a project.

It can take significant time to locate and acquire property, plan the project, confirm the budget, lock in financing, and get through permitting. In the current climate, there are numerous factors at national and global levels impacting labor and material prices, product delivery times, labor availability, etc.

RR: General contractors are always thought to be trying to “stick it” to their clients, but we’re trying to change that perception. Especially here, where the network is so important. If you can do right by one client, they’re sending along other businesses.

Positive feedback travels fast here.

B2B: How has the last year impacted business?

GK: We navigated through it and are stronger and better because of it. Our current backlog is high, our employees are highly engaged, and we have work well into 2022. The Omaha construction market is robust and healthy, and we are very optimistic about the future.

RR: Usually when you get a bid for work, there will be maybe a percent or two difference. But right now, everyone is so busy that you’re seeing a 10 to 15% increase in bids for the same work. The costs of lumber alone have increased 300%.

BM: Building did take slightly longer than we expected. We built [our own space] last year and completed before the pandemic really impacted us, so we didn’t see any delays that we would expect today.

B2B: What would you advise those looking to build to research or expect?

GK: It’s extremely important to start the process with input from a wide variety of experts with relevant experience in the areas of real estate, finance, taxes, design, and construction. Value the input of your experts and be ready to quickly make a lot of significant decisions. Be realistic with expectations and remember the old adages “you get what you pay for” and “time is money.” You’re investing capital in a significant asset; do it wisely.

RR: A big mistake many people make is they find land they like and they buy it. They don’t realize the site costs could add hundreds of thousands of dollars they didn’t anticipate. Find your code requirements for your neighborhood and learn the hidden costs that may be associated with choosing to build at that location. Get your architect involved in the process of location scouting. They can help you understand how some of the codes may interfere with your plans. The sooner you can get us in on the project, the more legwork we can do for you.

BM: Really you have to weigh your options regarding leasing [an existing property] versus buying and building. Right now, working from home could play a factor as space might not be needed as much as it was a year or two ago. I would always be for owning versus renting, but you also have to think long-term as you’re not getting your money back right away leasing out space. It’s a big investment with a long-term payback.

B2B

Greg Key

Brandon Myers

Rob Ryan

14 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

14

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

S

omAHA! | STORY BY KIM CARPENTER PHOTO BY BILL SITZMANN

MAKING A STATEMENT

VAHALLAN’S ARTISAN APPROACH TO WALL COVERINGS FILLS UNIQUE NICHE “THEY ARE NOT SUPER-TRADITIONAL. THEY ARE TOPICS OF CONVERSATION, AND PEOPLE ALWAYS ASK, ‘WHAT’S ON YOUR WALL?’ THEY TRANSFORM PLAIN WALLS INTO STATEMENT WALLS.” -ANNIE KAUFMAN

aks Fifth Avenue, Christian Dior, Cartier, and Mikimoto are known for their high fashion in the clothing industry, and their sense of fashion extends to their showroom walls. What is not immediately known, however, is the Nebraska connection to those walls.

In recent decades, wallpaper got a bad rap.

Quaint floral patterns of years past harkened to grandmothers in house dresses. But Alliance, Nebraska, native Dan Nelson intuitively knew wallpaper would be making a comeback decades ago. He founded his Lincoln-based company, today known as Vahallan, in 1997 and has been building a loyal clientele that’s eager for his designs. That’s because Vahallan boasts a distinctive line of bespoke, hand-painted wall coverings created by a team of professional artists.

Nelson owes the spark for his creative vision to his brother, who first reinvigorated a wall in his home with a hand-painted, distressed design. His mother soon imitated the technique. Nelson, who was living in Manhattan, Kansas, in the early 1990s, disliked how the wallpaper in his apartment was peeling off the walls, so he grabbed a roll of craft paper and some paint and worked to create a marbleized design. It received rave reviews. “Everyone was just amazed by it,” Nelson remembered.

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 15

The team at Vahallan

He started experimenting in his garage with different techniques, and by 1997 was ready to leave his full-time job and commit to creating wall coverings for a living. He started with two employees and began revealing his creations at showcases such as the Street of Dreams, where he handed out at least 600 business cards during a four-day period. Local designers soon clamored for his wallpapers.

The global wall covering market generated slightly more than $30 billion in 2020 and is projected to reach $40 billion by 2026. Vahallan stands out for its handcrafted, artisanal offerings, which it creates for residential and commercial clients. “When we first started, only three or four companies did what we do,” Nelson said. “Now, it’s maybe 25. We are different and fill a specific niche.”

Vahallan’s project manager, Annie Kaufman, said that niche is immediately evident. “Right off the bat, as soon as you see the wall coverings, you see how beautiful they are. Once you touch and feel them, you think that even more so,” Kaufman said.

“They are not super-traditional. They are topics of conversation, and people always ask, ‘What’s on your wall?’ They transform plain walls into statement walls.”

That niche is met by eight artists who work to create an eclectic collection with poetic names such as “Aravalli” and “Velino.” Graphics range from softly blurred, textured surfaces to bolder, more patterned designs. There are now roughly 50 collections, with four to seven colorways available for each line.

The approach is highly specialized and artisan. “First and foremost, everything starts with our hands,” Kaufman said. The result is a textured surface that’s more painterly than printed. It can take six to eight weeks to produce 100 square feet. Vahallan’s artists collaborate and experiment. Clients often commission specific looks to match their interiors, such as a recent brushed metal wall covering created for a contemporary statement wall in Dallas.

CELEBRITIES LIKE STEVE HARVEY PROUDLY DISPLAY VAHALLAN’S CREATIONS ON THEIR WALLS.

Since Vahallan’s designs are so labor- and timeintensive, the company works exclusively with licensed interior designers and showrooms. The aforementioned high-end retail spaces have featured the company’s wall coverings. Nelson also said clients in China, Singapore, the Middle East, and Europe have all placed orders, and celebrities such as Steve Harvey display Vahallan’s creations on their walls.

The global pandemic showed no sign of slowing the business down. With more people spending time at home, Vahallan grew by a whopping 10% since COVID-19 hit.

“It was our best year ever. It was really strong,” Nelson says. “It’s hard to keep up with demand.”

Visit vahallan.com for more information.

B2B

16 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

16

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

ON THE RISE | STORY BY CHARLIE LITTON | PHOTO BY BILL SITZMANN

SPECIAL ENERGY

ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY EXPERT LIVES HER PASSION

I

t’s comforting that there are people in this world who are intensely passionate about heating, ventilation, and air conditioning. Sarah Poursharafeddin, 38-year-old owner and founder of Environmental Quality Experts, a manufacturer’s rep firm in the commercial HVAC industry, is one of them.

It’s an industry that escapes notice until something goes wrong. Passions run higher when the AC gasps its last, dying breath in the third week of August, or when the furnace grinds to a halt in late January.

But those who spend about 90 seconds with Poursharafeddin will learn about a whole new world…and want to be a part of it.

“She’s a joy to be around, and her energy is unstoppable,” said Gary Cooper, vice president and principal at Alvine Engineering with 42 years invested in the HVAC industry.

“It is a profession that’s founded in science, and technology, and things we all need to survive in this world,” Poursharafeddin said. That includes providing expertise, high-tech devices, and indoor air quality reports for places such as hospitals, data centers, and university buildings.

“These buildings are what bring us together,” she said. “They really are alive, in and of themselves, and we have to take care of them…This [is] how I became passionate. I feel like the work I do matters.”

And the work always matters. Especially during the pandemic.

“If anything it really kind of increased the urgency and importance around some of the topics and ideas that a lot of us professionals in the industry have been talking about for a long time: resiliency, sustainability, indoor air quality,” she said.

Indoor air quality is the piece that first grabbed her attention when she started working in the industry 20-odd years ago. She had graduated high school, and the then-University of Nebraska at Omaha theater major needed a job—any job.

Answering phones and organizing files for a nowdefunct HVAC firm fit the bill. She didn’t have a title or even much of a job description, but that was a feature, not a fault.

“WHILE I DIDN’T HAVE A JOB DESCRIPTION, I DIDN’T HAVE ANY RESTRICTIONS. I GOT TO EXPLORE THIS INDUSTRY FROM A LOT OF DIFFERENT VANTAGE POINTS EARLY ON AND FIND THE ONES I LIKED, WHICH HAS BEEN A GIFT TO ME MY ENTIRE CAREER.” -SARAH POURSHARAFEDDIN “While I didn’t have a job description, I didn’t have any re-strictions,” she emphasized. “I got to explore this industry from a lot of different vantage points early on and find the ones I liked, which has been a gift to me my entire career.”

A key point of exploration set the tone for her career when she attended her first networking event hosted by the Nebraska ASHRAE chapter.

Before it went global, ASHRAE stood for the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers.

“When I started, I was often the only woman in the room,” she said, “and [at 18] I was just getting used to thinking of myself as a woman and not a girl. So that was a very intimidating moment.”

She was one of maybe two women in a room of nearly 100—self-conscious about her gender, about her age, and her background as the daughter of an Iranian immigrant. Still, one of the more prominent industry members enjoined her to “come meet everyone.”

She did, and reveled in the fact that this group of industry competitors were, in fact…friends.

“Even though I felt very alone in my gender and in my ethnicity in that room,” she said, “it wasn’t because people didn’t want me there. There were lots of people who did want me there, and that felt really, really good.”

Hook set, she went on to found her own company in 2012, and has since been paying it forward.

Cooper has known Poursharafeddin for almost two decades. When his daughter, also named Sarah, graduated from college, she struggled with the uncertainty of what comes next. “[Poursharafeddin] became a mentor to her and I just adored that,” Cooper said.

B2B

“THESE BUILDINGS ARE WHAT BRING US TOGETHER. THEY REALLY ARE ALIVE, IN AND OF THEMSELVES, AND WE HAVE TO TAKE CARE OF THEM…THIS IS HOW I BECAME PASSIONATE. I FEEL LIKE THE WORK I DO MATTERS.” -SARAH POURSHARAFEDDIN

18 | B2B MAGAZINE

SPONSORED CONTENT

BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY 10303 CROWN POINT

C.A.D.E. PHOTOS BY KATY ANDERSON, BILL SITZMANN, AND CONTRIBUTED STORIES BY LEO ADAM BIGA AND CONTRIBUTED

O

maha has long been known to have great architecture and design. Tech High, when built in 1923, was noted to be the largest high school west of Chicago. And Kountze Park was home to dozens of buildings in Grecian and Roman Revival styles, all created for, and demolished right after, the Trans-Mississippi Exposition in 1898.

These days, Omaha is still turning out great architecture and design. The park at Aksarben Village features a notably 90-foot-tall obelisk. The Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center has effortlessly blended art and architecture together to create useful and beautiful spaces for health and healing.

And Omaha is home to great feats of engineering, also. The Bob Kerrey Bridge is a 3,000-foot cable-stayed bridge over which thousands of people traipse each year, having their photos taken with one foot in Nebraska and the other in Iowa.

The following pages of sponsored content bring stories of great construction, architecture, design, and engineering firms.

B2B

Berkshire Hathaway HS | Ambassador Real Estate— Commercial Division is pleased to offer for sale this fully leased multi-tenant office building in Omaha.​ This stabilized investment property provides consistent cash flow with upside potential considering the existing below market rents.​ Contact us today for more information on this property or other commercial properties for sale or lease in Nebraska and Iowa.

331 VILLAGE POINTE PLAZA OMAHA, NE 68118 402.917.3035 BHHSAMBCOMMERCIAL.COM

SPONSORED CONTENT

JUNE · JULY

| 19

PROCHASKA & ASSOCIATES

BY LINDA QUISTAD & CURT FIELD

APROPOS DESIGN SHANDRA PETTIT & JENNIFER COCCIA Apropos Design Interior Designer and Principal Shandra Pettit launched her business in April 2014 to fulfill her entrepreneurial drive, creative spirit, and passion for design.

This comprehensive interior design studio showcases Pettit’s experience in a multitude of styles. Her work encompasses every detail of design for new construction, additions, remodels, and redesigns. Pettit’s knowledge of cabinet design, and work within multiple rendering programs, offer clients a visual resource to view their dream space in an exciting and realistic manner.

Coccia began as an intern with Apropos Design in early 2020 and continues to work as an interior designer. With the goal of growing her business and team, Pettit recognized Coccia’s positive attitude, determination, and talent made her a perfect fit and asset to the company.

Known for their natural ability to connect and communicate, the dynamic duo provides clients with an enjoyable experience while creating beautiful, functional spaces. Pettit and Coccia earn clients’ trust and respect by working with authenticity and integrity. They strive to exceed homeowners’ expectations and build lasting relationships. Pettit and Coccia pride themselves on being advocates for their clients and take time to educate them about selections and the design process.

Pettit and Coccia are Allied ASID members. Pettit is also a member of the National Kitchen and Bath Association and National Association of the Remodeling Industry.

OMAHA, NE 402.203.6824 APROPOSDESIGN.CO

Prochaska & Associates is reaching new heights with cutting-edge, ‘Tried and True’ exceptional Architecture, Engineering, inspired Interior Design and well-seasoned knowledge of various Construction techniques! A 38 year old full in house Architectural/Engineering firm, Prochaska & Associates possesses the skills to remodel, re-imagine or simply design from scratch your new highly functional, yet extremely efficient spaces to fit today’s demanding budgets, incorporating environmentally-friendly, energy-conserving, and improved air-quality HVAC designs.

The Prochaska & Associates Team averages 26 years Architectural, Engineering, Interior Design experience, and more than 16 years of time working together at the firm, thus forming a close-knit, reliable confident group. Our office size and strong work ethic means we are the right-size to handle any design and construction issue you face, from small-scale consulting, to multi-million dollar, even complex phased building projects. Our claim to fame in the Omaha area can be seen in numerous Schools, Justice, Car Dealerships, and Fire Stations, including a variety of unique projects.

The increased efficiency of all parts working together in harmony at an Architectural/Engineering firm is what makes our firm so unique. Complex problems can be solved quickly, even the smallest of questions can be answered within the short distance between us, saving valuable schedule time and money for our Clients, speeding up the entire process which is, after all, the bottom line for our clients and why they keep coming back!

In today’s market ‘budget conscious’ delivery is imperative, Prochaska & Associates keeps YOU in mind, every step of your project!

11317 CHICAGO CIRCLE OMAHA, NE 68154 402.334.0755 PROCHASKA.US

20 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

EXCEPTIONAL Service INNOVATIVE Ideas A SPECTACULAR Experience

SPONSORED CONTENT

2021 Winner

CONFLUENCE BUILDING A BETTER WAY SINCE 1855 mechanical | electrical | lighting | technology | commissioning

WEITZ.COM

Building Culture and Community in Omaha and Beyond

www.actual.ac

DOLORES SILKWORTH CAITLIN BOLTE CALVIN HEAN “Confluence is excited to be an important part of the Omaha design community,” said Principal Dolores Silkworth. “This small office of seasoned professionals is focused on improving the quality of our natural and built environment through sound and sensitive landscape architecture, urban design and planning. We are supported by 70-plus staff across nine offices from Chicago to Denver, and, together with our teaming partners, create places full of life. Recent constructed work in the Omaha/ Lincoln region includes the beautification of 24th Street and the California Mall on the Creighton University campus, a new fountain and icon for the Fountain Ridge Project with R&R Realty on West Dodge Road and site work for the Automotive Tech Building on Metropolitan Community College’s south campus,” Confluence landscape architects, planners, and designers work collaboratively with allied professionals and project stakeholders to ensure environments reach their full potential. Its authentic placemaking approach considers past and present community conditions and concerns while remaining future forward oriented. Confluence prioritizes sustainable strategies and integrated design to create vital campuses and energized districts that seamlessly connect people with places.

1111 N. 13TH ST., STUDIO 204 OMAHA, NE 68102 402.973.9908 THINKCONFLUENCE.COM

SPONSORED CONTENT

5 TIPS FOR PLANNING SUSTAINABLE AND LASTING GROWTH FOR YOUR BUSINESS

JUNE · JULY

| 21

By: Patti Brannon, Director of Market Growth

For a business to thrive in today’s market, it must follow a sustainable business growth strategy. Developing such a strategy presents a challenge for all business leaders, but while all businesses differ in some ways, a good business growth strategy features characteristics that apply to any business. Let’s examine five tips for planning sustainable and lasting growth for your business.

1. Stay Mission-Driven At the root of every business should be a mission or vision. What are the broader goals of your business, its purpose? A clear mission statement provides a foundation for all business operations moving forward. This applies to leaders, employees, and customers. Leaders can always come back to the mantra during challenging times or when teaching others. When coming aboard, staff members should immediately learn the business’ mission and understand how they can contribute to advancing it.

Customers and clients should also be aware of the mission. A business should boldly scribe their mission statement on their website and in their offices and storefronts. By making these objectives known, everyone involved with the business gets a better idea of its brand, its purpose, and its goals for the future.

2. Create a Recognizable, Strong Brand Business development and brand development go hand in hand.

A coherent mission is at the core of a business’ brand, but brands go even further into the psyche. We all know the power of brand by the coffee cups we see or hold on a daily basis, the shoes on our feet, or the phones in our pockets. These brands have become inherently valuable, from their logo to their place in the social sphere.

To develop a brand, you’ll need a stark marketing campaign. Your business should feature an elegant and recognizable logo and motto that’s ready to be printed on any object imaginable. These images and words should evoke the mission and character of the business and its marketing. If done correctly, the logo will become synonymous with the business and its mission, creating a truly powerful brand.

3. Focus on Developing Effective Leadership A ship won’t get very far without a competent captain and clear roles. To avoid a shipwreck or mutiny, a business must instill its values into its leaders and encourage leadership development.

Employees should feel empowered in the workplace to speak up, ask questions, and be heard. This type of environment doesn’t just increase productivity, it increases the overall value of a business.

Websites like Glassdoor.com feature public comments from previous employees that reveal the inner workings of a business. When people learn of a business’ poor leadership, they may rescind their brand loyalty and go elsewhere.

However, effective leadership helps retain employees and leaves a far better impression for the public eye. And the more leaders, the better, so long as everyone can work collaboratively.

4. Establish Solid Partnerships Your business doesn’t exist in a vacuum. To optimize the output of that sales growth formula, it needs the help of external resources, such as marketers, distributors, accountants, lawyers, and more. It’s crucial to work with the right people and build a relationship of mutual trust. Though your business is not responsible for the mistakes or failures of a partner, it must react to these eventualities in the proper way by either cutting ties or helping to ameliorate the situation.

5. Build Internal and External Communities Business development is all about people, both inside and outside of the company. This is why it’s so important to foster a positive work culture and expand that atmosphere externally.

These spheres will influence each other. Internally, employees and leaders should trust one another to make decisions and change course when necessary. On the outside, customers should feel at home when stepping into a storefront or office space. Providing little comforts like complimentary coffee or water can go a long way.

The digital space has opened several doors for building communities. Staying active on social media by posting often and engaging with customers makes a big difference and doubles as a marketing tool. Everyone should feel welcome and involved in the business, regardless of their stake in it.

By creating a salient mission, imbuing it with a strong brand, instilling this in leaders and partners, and cultivating a positive community, businesses have a better chance of growing and staying relevant for years to come.

Leaders can learn about even more business growth solutions via Leadership Resources. Our purpose is making the impossible possible through people. We aim to do so by helping individuals develop patterns of success that will decrease stress levels and maximize productivity. Visit Leadership Resources at LRSuccess.com to learn more.

Patti Brannon is the Director of Market Growth for Leadership Resources, a leadership development and strategic planning organization with offices in Omaha and Lincoln. If you are interested in more information you can reach Patti at 402.423.5152 or patti.brannon@LRsuccess.com SPONSORED CONTENT

22 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

22

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

FEATURE | STORY BY BRODY HILGENKAMP PHOTO BY BILL SITZMANN

STEP BY STEP

STEADY TRANSFORMATION DUE TO DEVELOPMENT

T

hose who haven’t been out west in a while can drive the expressway on West Dodge Road and find multiple large buildings in the works. Crossroads Mall? A lot of it is gone now, demolished to make way for something new.

Omaha is undergoing a big transformation, with several billion dollars worth of major development underway all across the metro area, from Avenue One and Heartwood Preserve to the west, to Crossroads and the Riverfront Revitalization Project in the center and east. Those massive undertakings provide a snapshot of what the region will be around the corner and also prompt questions about where the next big thing will go.

The Lerner Co., a commercial real estate brokerage, development, and property management company, conducted an analysis of the Omaha-area retail market in 2020; it hadn’t done a similar report since 2017 but brought it back to try to quantify the impact of COVID-19. In 2020, just under 11% of retail square footage was vacant, according to the report, marginally higher than it was in 2017.

Ben Meier, vice president at The Lerner Co., said that points to the region’s steady pace of development that, while it may have held back growth that could’ve happened more quickly, it also prevented overbuilding. “It is interesting to see how Omaha, we have had a model of just slowly getting better and we don’t have the big ups, we don’t have the big downs,” he said. “The conservative aspect has really saved those ugly eyesores where you get into some of the larger cities that have overbuilt without really thinking about it.”

“IT IS INTERESTING TO SEE HOW OMAHA, WE HAVE HAD A MODEL OF JUST SLOWLY GETTING BETTER AND WE DON’T HAVE THE BIG UPS, WE DON’T HAVE THE BIG DOWNS. THE CONSERVATIVE ASPECT HAS REALLY SAVED THOSE UGLY EYESORES WHERE YOU GET INTO SOME OF THE LARGER CITIES THAT HAVE OVERBUILT WITHOUT REALLY THINKING ABOUT IT.” -BEN MEIER One of the fastest developing areas in the metro is around Elkhorn South High School near 204th and Pacific streets, and one project there will bring the area’s first restaurant with a rooftop pool.

That’s where Omaha developer Aaron McKeever and his business partners are putting Barrel & Vine, as well as a sister development of higher end apartment buildings called The Dalmore. Barrel & Vine will be a combination restaurant, bar, and music venue with a rooftop bar and swimming pool that are accessible to the public and The Dalmore tenants. Patrons will have an “elevated experience,” McKeever said. “What we’re creating is pretty much a one-stop shop in terms of various experiences you’re going to have at Barrel & Vine,” McKeever said. “We’re also allowing for our tenants to take in those experiences as well, within a walkable community.”

CONT. PAGE 24

From left: Rob Luellen and Scott Brown

24 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

Flat Roof Specialists

Reroofs • Repair • Metal • Skylight 34 Years of Quality, Integrity and Service

FROM PAGE 22 Largest Durolast Contractor in Nebraska

C O R P

Visit us online Ciaccioroofing.com or call 402.293.8707 for a FREE estimate!

4420 Izard St • Omaha, NE

Convenience will be a major draw at Barrel & Vine, McKeever said. With its location on the western edge of the city, it will be easily accessed by the households nearby. Rather than driving 20 or 30 minutes to a venue in Benson or downtown, those concertgoers can drive five or 10 minutes, making spur-of-the-moment outings more appealing.

Nearby communities such as Bennington, Gretna, Valley, and Fremont also could take advantage of the amenities and attractions.

McKeever also noted that Barrel & Vine will have a “modern rustic” design and vibe, adding that it was important for these elements to complement each other at the music venue and the nearby apartments.

“We didn’t want it too rustic where people thought that we were a country place,” he said, “and then we didn’t want it too modern in western Omaha where people would think that it was too extravagant.” He took an interest in many of the design elements of Barrel & Vine and included inspiration from restaurants in New York City; Scottsdale, Arizona; and everywhere in between. Barrel & Vine will be “progressive in terms of having that cool factor” with the rooftop pool, which he has seen at restaurants in Kansas City; Minneapolis, Minnesota; and Chicago.

2021 Winner

Sales Should Be Fun, Not Frustrating!

“Thank you Sandler! My 2020 sales increased 136% year-over-year because “Sandler Works!”

Sandler calls itself sales training, but I call it sales generating.”

-Patricia Fredrichs

Our Services: • • • •

Sales Training Sales Management Training Coaching Assessments

JOIN US for an executive briefing to learn more about how Sandler Training can grow your business.

Register at www.karlschaphorst.sandler.com Or call us at 402.403-4334.

T: 402.403.4334 10711 O Street • Omaha, NE 68127 kschaphorst@sandler.com

McKeever envisions a scenario where someone can enjoy lounging in the sun and cocktails by the pool during the day, eat a meal prepared in a kitchen led by two executive chefs with a combined 60 years of experience, then go home and return for a concert later that night in a music venue that holds between 300 and 400 people.

2021 Winner

Karl Schaphorst Owner

The location, and lots of action nearby, made for an appealing environment to bring in the restaurant and 77-unit The Dalmore, which derives its name from a high-end Scottish whisky—thus reinforcing the tie to Barrel & Vine. Multiple strip malls with a variety of businesses and a grocery store are within walking distance, planting an urbanstyle walkability experience in a suburban area.

(McKeever noted that even if someone lives close to downtown areas and music venues in other parts of Omaha, they’re still driving to get groceries.)

Love Church recently relocated from Millard North High School to its new building immediately to the east.

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 25

Other developments line 204th Street, especially to the south. Multiple apartment complexes are in the works. A movie theater went in near Harrison Street. An orthopedic and physical therapy facility is under construction and expected to open in the fall near the intersection with Center Street.

Immediately to the east of that is a private car condo for collectors that opened last year. All of this is not to mention nearby projects commuters see popping up along West Dodge like the billiondollar Avenue One development at 192nd Street.

The development along 204th Street “is blowing up overnight,” McKeever said. The road is highly accessible and is part of the state highway system that connects communities as far north as Bennington to those further south like Ashland and Gretna. As the metro’s last major north-south corridor before the Elkhorn River, it makes for an area of high growth potential. “It takes a few projects and then it just dominoes,” he said.

Meier said he sees Omaha’s future growth happening in two ways. The first is around the western and southern crescent from Bennington as far south as Springfield. In anticipation of continued growth, voters in the Gretna, Bennington, and Springfield-Platteview school districts approved bonds for school expansion in 2020, and Gretna and Papillion-La Vista voters approved bonds in 2018.

Other than a blip in 2017, single-family housing construction permits west of Interstate 680 typically outpace those in the interior of the city, although the gap is closing, according to Omaha-Council Bluffs Metropolitan Area Planning Agency’s Regional Development Report that was released last October. (Commercial permits, those for construction typically devoted to employment, are more evenly distributed across the metro, according to MAPA.) Sarpy County and its cities established a sewer agency to provide infrastructure to the southern portion of the county below a ridgeline that has made development difficult. “That’s going to create all sorts of opportunities for residential growth that you just don’t have north of [Interstate] 680, east of Blair High Road,” Meier said.

THE SECOND WAY MEIER SEES OMAHA GROWING IS INTERNALLY THROUGH UPDATING CURRENT DEVELOPMENT, ALSO REFERRED TO AS INFILL.

The second way Meier sees Omaha growing is internally through updating current development, also referred to as infill. He pointed to the former Mall of the Bluffs and Menard Inc.’s plan to renovate that area into one of its home improvement stores, and the $500 million Crossroads Mall redevelopment project at 72nd and Dodge streets, as prime examples. “That’s going to be phenomenal because that’s one of the densest parts of Omaha,” Meier said of Crossroads. “You can really get a good smattering of customers.” He added, “Density and infill stuff is absolutely going to continue to be a hot spot, and the biggest challenge is going to be dirt cost.”

Proximity to high traffic corridors will always play a role in fostering development, and those in combination with a third factor, local land use policy, can also shed some light on where a city’s next major venture will be. Mike Helgerson, transportation and data manager at MAPA, said accessibility to transportation networks have always played a role in development. He pointed to how towns grew along railroad routes and how streetcars and intercity rail have shaped cities.

When automobile use became widespread, cities were able to expand. In Omaha, the expressway on Dodge accelerated expansion west.

It’s a chicken-or-the-egg argument whether accessibility to corridors causes development or vice-versa, but local policy is where the inherent relationship between the two manifests itself. The City of Omaha, in its master plan, has nodes at many major intersections around the city that are dedicated for a mix of uses. The intent is to create environments where people can live, work, and play all in the same vicinity. Those nodes provide a framework and an invitation for either new development—like what’s happening at 204th and Pacific—or “strategic infill” similar to the Crossroads revitalization. Heartwood Preserve, the impressive endeavor underway on the old Boys Town Farm that stretches south from Dodge near 144th Street, has elements of both.

Modes of transportation themselves can also play a role. There are multiple initiatives through the Greater Omaha Chamber, MAPA, the city of Omaha, and other entities to broaden transportation options in the area, whether it be bike lanes or a streetcar. Helgerson pointed to the ORBT bus line that began operating last fall along Dodge Street as a decision that could foster development, both along the current route or future ones, if and when ORBT expands.

“That local policy is really what’s guiding that development, and in certain areas there’s more flexibility than others,” he said.

The UNMC/Nebraska Medicine has plans for a campus that could cost as much as $2 billion, announced in 2019, could have massive ripple effects in the vicinity of its campus and throughout the region due to its outsized role as a major employer, its central location, and its proximity to the ORBT route.

The Lerner Co., in its 2020 retail report, made note of the metro area’s southwest quadrant, specifically Oakview Mall at 144th Street and West Center Road, as an area of opportunity. The area had the metro’s highest vacancy rate at 14.7%, including large portions of Oakview Mall, which saw the recent departures of multiple anchor tenants and recently sold. At the time of the interview, Lerner said Oakview likely will be turned into a mixed use development, similar to the transformation currently underway at its cousin Crossroads. Lerner also noted two grocery stores and a Gordmans location also closed in the quadrant.

MEIER SAID MANY BUSINESSES IN THE RETAIL SECTOR HAVE ALTERED THEIR APPROACH INTO A HYBRID OF TRADITIONAL RETAIL AND MODERN DISTRIBUTION CENTER ELEMENTS. Meier said retail companies still value accessibility, proximity to other retailers and major thoroughfares, and favorable demographic data. But some, due to a combination of technological advancements, economic trends, and pandemic-related innovation for survival, are changing the nature of retail, which could have impacts on future development. Meier said many businesses in the retail sector have altered their approach into a hybrid of traditional retail and modern distribution center elements; examples would be Walmart and Target beefing up their online shopping experiences or Chipotle adding space in its kitchens for a seamless drive-thru experience. As those companies go through those changes, they will keep an eye on high-performing areas where they can place future stores.

B2B

John Sova

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 27

27

FEATURE | STORY BY LISA LUKECART | PHOTO BY BILL SITZMANN

ARCHITECTURAL DREAMS LEAD TO DESIGN DIRECTION HOW ONE CAREER FIELD PUSHES OTHERS

A

rchitects bring to mind the image of Mike Brady, the wholesome dad living in a midcentury modern home; or Kem Roomhaus, whom Batman called a “narcissistic creep but…also a genius”; or perhaps Flipper Purify, living an all-American dream that includes having an affair with his secretary.

Wealthy, powerful, artistic. It’s a career combination that’s attractive for many high school students trying to figure out their next step in that all-important journey called life. The reality, however, is that the field involves more than drawing buildings all day.

Even before entering the bachelor’s degree program for architecture at Iowa State University, students are recommended to take trigonometry, physics, and studio art classes in high school.

35% OF COLLEGE STUDENTS WHO HAD ORIGINALLY DECLARED A STEM MAJOR HAD CHANGED THEIR FIELD OF STUDY WITHIN 3 YEARS. Those STEM-heavy courses mean that students who are more interested in the art side of architecture don’t always enjoy the field as much as they thought they would. A study by the National Center for Educational Statistics in December 2017 mentioned 35% of college students who had originally declared a STEM major had changed their field of study within three years.

John Sova, president of RDG Planning & Design, knows “every brick and bone” of the Millard West school structure. After all, he helped build it.

“I’m pretty proud of that and it makes me feel good,” Sova said. “This…this is why we need to get producing architects. It keeps this part of the economy going.”

It shows them how firms in the real world work as a collective unit. Although she struggled a little her freshman year, mainly due to the high school/ college transition, a mentor guided her.

Majoring in architecture, though, might seem daunting once those starry-eyed studio artists start looking at future career paths. Even Frank Lloyd Wright, known as one of the most talented architects of the 20th century, dropped out from the University of Wisconsin. Instead, he picked up the craft through on-the-site experience at a Chicago architectural firm.

“A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE A SKEWED VISION OF ARCHITECTURE. YOU ARE UP ALL NIGHT EVERY NIGHT, OR IT IS THE BUILDING THAT DOESN’T CLOSE ON CAMPUS.” -GENEVA SINKULA

That was in the late 1880s. Pencils and drafting papers of yore have now been replaced by high tech software and 3D computer graphics. Classes combine multiple aptitudes such as calculus and history. Critical and creative thinkers need to collaborate on projects from a diverse set of perspectives.

“A lot of people have a skewed vision of architecture.

You are up all night every night, or it is the building that doesn’t close on campus. I think it’s the opposite. I have such a healthy passionate relationship with architecture and I never thought a major in college would be like that,” Sinkula, a mentor herself now, explained.

David Karle, director of the architecture program at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Architecture, said an ideal fit for the profession would be “someone who values community, someone who respects space, and someone who respects the environment.”

Those who are interested in the arts portion of architecture may end up in studio arts or graphic arts, while those who are interested in the construction part of architecture often end up switching to construction management. Those fields then have a bigger field of employees from which to choose.

Geneva Sinkula, 22, believes the major is worth the effort as she eyes the end of her fourth year at the UNL College of Architecture. She realized architecture merges her love of travel and art. The degree programs bring together different degree components the first and fourth years, providing an interdisciplinary experience. Fourth year students focus energy in the design studio, sometimes spending four to five hours working on projects.

CONT. PAGE 28

28 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

FROM PAGE 27 Sinkula attended a summer discovery camp while in high school that opened her eyes to the field.

The six-day Career Explorations in Architecture, Interior Design and Landscape Architecture Workshop at UNL allows interested students to really see what the major is all about before stepping through the doors. The degree program ranges from landscape architecture to interior design to community and regional planning, welcoming a mix of talent. Sinkula will graduate as a firstgeneration college student in her family and plans to head to graduate school with a focus in historic preservation. Most in the program devote at least six years in order to acquire accreditation.

The dropout rates in the UNL College of Architecture remain relativity low. The retention rate from the fall to the spring of 2020 held at a steady 97.4% while enrolling an almost even number of males and females. The college has a 96% job placement rate for architecture, a 96% rate for interior design, and a 90% rate for landscape architecture.

Sova believes the architectural job market has recently become competitive for those newly graduated applicants. He typically hires a couple newbies each year, but graduates have had more choices these past two years due to an increase in demand. Sova, also a member of the advisory council at the UNL College of Architecture, is celebrating his 40th year at the firm. Those shivers of anticipation of walking into something he created still hasn’t left him.

“I love every morning getting up and being an architect,” Sova said.

Visit rdgusa.com or architecture.unl.edu for more information.

B2B

A national & regional powerhouse in meetings & events. @planitincevents

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 29

“

Get the financing you need from

PEOPLE YOU CAN TRUST.

“

Sean, Senior Commercial Loan Officer

Your business has financial needs. We’ve got you covered.

You need a responsive financial partner that’s easy to work with. See how we can help you meet your business goals.

Local staff, local decisions. That’s the value of Veridian. veridiancu.org/commercial

800.235.3228, ext. 8333

OMAHA’S

MAGAZINE

4REASONS To Use One Source for Background Screening

Fast, Thorough & Easy To Read Reports Real-Time, Original Source Records FCRA & EEOC Compliant No Hidden Fees or Long-Term Contracts

Mention this ad to get started for FREE!

800.608.3645

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM/PAGES/SUBSCRIBE

|

info@onesourcebackground.com

|

onesourcebackground.com

David Neef

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 31

“THESE PAST FIVE YEARS, AND THEN THESE NEXT 10 YEARS, ARE GOING TO BE PRETTY FASCINATING TO SIT BACK AND WITNESS, LET ALONE BE PART OF.” - BRIAN ORTON

31

FEATURE | STORY BY SCOTT STEWART PHOTOS BY BILL SITZMANN

DRIVEN BY TECHNOLOGY

ENGINEERS EMBRACE NEW TECHNOLOGY TO SPEED UP PROJECT TIMELINES

T

he idea of a building engineer being a licensed pilot was once thought of as a hobby, not a professional asset; but some of today’s engineers need their pilot’s licenses.

While a well-sharpened pencil is always a handy tool for working the math problems that create skyscrapers, the engineers behind those facilities, and Omaha’s high-tech workplaces, say the work they’re doing greatly benefits from new technologies.

Nearly gone are the days of blueprints and scale models, replaced instead by virtual models— sometimes called a digital twin—depicting a planned building in greater detail. Projects can even be mapped into a “four-dimensional” model that shows a project’s development over time or the cost of each project component.

“It’s a golden age of information technology that we’re living in right now,” said Brian Orton, a vice president at Olsson. “These past five years, and then these next 10 years, are going to be pretty fascinating to sit back and witness, let alone be part of.”

Renderings can show a building on the exact landscape of a site thanks to high-resolution photos captured by drones. Engineers can show how lighting will fill a space or fine-tune design with a computer’s assistance.

Orton says it won’t be long before computers are generating the initial designs for projects.

A decade ago, smartphones weren’t nearly as ubiquitous. Now smart devices are supplanting conventional computers, relying on the power of data centers.

“Today, we are almost completely cloud-based in our design practice,” said Orton, who runs Olsson’s data center engineering and construction engagement with large tech firms. “The work that we’re doing is collaborative with multiple parties synched through the cloud, so our design development is happening much faster.”

So, too, is the surveying that takes place before those buildings are designed.

David H. Neef, a registered land surveyor for Thompson, Dreessen & Dorner for nearly three decades, now also has to be an FAA-licensed pilot.

He plans missions and uses drones to map and gather topographical information for sites that TD2 is surveying.

The drones take a photo every two-thirds of a second, and a computer pieces together the few hundred photos, using GPS data to create a composite photo.

CONT. PAGE 32

32 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

“THAT’S THE WAY THE ENTIRE INDUSTRY IS MOVING. WE CAN BRING A BIT MORE ADAPTIVITY WITHIN THE DESIGN SUITE.” -BRIAN ORTON

The Harry A. Koch Co. is now FNIC

FROM PAGE 31

It’s not just a new name and brand. It’s the transformation of seventeen individual insurance agencies uniting their brands, experiences, stories, and futures into one.

2021 Winner

Thank you for voting us

Best Insurance Agency 10 years in a row!

Before drones, Neef said he would send a field crew out to measure every dimension and elevation by hand using tape or surveying equipment. Those measurements would be used to create a line drawing of the site.

“The advantage of using the drone is now you get a really nice, clear, current picture of the site,” Neef said.

While a traditional survey of a 200-acre site once took a two-person crew about two weeks, the drone surveying can be completed within one day.

800.344.5624 | fnicgroup.com “It saves a lot of time on site,” Neef said.

Commercial Insurance . Employee Benefits . Surety Bonds . Personal Insurance

Once those pictures are captured, highly technical projects continue to move quickly, so Olsson plans projects in their actual space instead of abstract drawings. 4D modeling allows for time, cost, or other location-based data to be shown alongside the plans. Instead of blueprints, Olsson now uses a sophisticated database.

“That’s the way the entire industry is moving,” Orton said. “We can bring a bit more adaptivity within the design suite.”

The computers can also perform seismic calculations, analyze energy use, show how light will hit the building, and help reduce wait time and control costs. Eventually, the software is expected to be able to generate initial designs and help optimize projects.

“The building blocks you can see are there,” Orton said. “We’re getting very sophisticated.”

Omaha has become a destination for data centers and other high-tech projects—and not just the Google and Facebook projects that dominate the headlines, but smaller, specialized data centers as well.

CONT. PAGE 34

Founder of Growth Guru Rick Faber

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 33

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE 2021 AWARD WINNERS SARPY COUNTY

DOUGLAS COUNTY

POTTAWATTAMIE COUNTY

Vala’s Pumpkin Patch & Apple Orchard BEST ATTRACTION

Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium BEST ATTRACTION

Ditmars Orchard & Vineyard BEST ATTRACTION

Embassy Suites

by Hilton La Vista BEST HOTEL

Omaha Marriott Downtown at the Capitol District BEST HOTEL

Stella’s Bar & Grill BEST RESTAURANT

Pitch Pizzeria BEST RESTAURANT

Nebraska Crossing BEST RETAIL BUSINESS

Made in Omaha BEST RETAIL BUSINESS

PRESENTING PARTNERSHIP

Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites @ Ameristar BEST HOTEL Pizza King BEST RESTAURANT Anytime Tees BEST RETAIL BUSINESS

SPONSORED BY

34 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

“THE PHOTO HELPS IDENTIFY THAT SORT OF THING THAT YOU WOULD NEVER SEE ON THE CONVENTIONAL WAY OF DOING THINGS. IT JUST GIVES YOU MORE INFORMATION. A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS, AS THEY SAY.” -DAVID NEEF

FROM PAGE 32 “We have a lot of others that are doing great work,” Orton said. “Data centers are an anchor technology that raises a lot of ships.”

The metro area also has investments in robotics and other technologies that promise to boost the region’s productivity and creativity. Still, many improvements can be found in everyday sort of projects, such as new sanitary and improvement districts.

Neef said TD2’s drones are perfectly suited for mapping new subdivisions going into cornfields that have been picked clean. They’re also useful to access areas that are unsafe but critical for surveying work, such as landfills.

They can also be used to survey an area repeatedly— which can help spot erosion, such as along a levee at risk of succumbing to a flood, or just show the development of a construction project.

Out-of-town clients prefer to see the drone photos, too, Neef said. It can help spot issues with roofs, parking lots, and other structures that might not have otherwise been noticed.

“The photo helps identify that sort of thing that you would never see on the conventional way of doing things,” Neef said. “It just gives you more information. A picture is worth a thousand words, as they say.”

The drones rely on the Global Positioning System that’s been in widespread use for about 20 years.

Neef said the advent of GPS was one of the biggest changes in the surveying industry. The use of drones takes that advancement to the next level.

Neef believes the technology will soon be used to help control costs by monitoring how work is progressing, helping to identify issues during construction that can be fixed immediately.

“It is going to cost less today to move something than when a project is almost done,” Neef said.

Visit td2co.com and olsson.com for more information.

B2B

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 35

The biggest tournament of the Korn Ferry Tour regular season will happen right here in Omaha as the top 25 players secure their PGA TOUR cards for the 2020–2021 season.

Don’t miss it!

Learn more at thepinnaclebankchampionship.com

AUGUST 9–15, 2021 | THE CLUB AT INDIAN CREEK | PIN_3569_OmahaMagAd_v2.indd 1

5/12/21 11:52 AM

A L W A Y S L O C A L, A L W A Y S B E A U T I F U L. Included with an Omaha Magazine Subscription— OmahaMagazine.com/Subscribe

Ted Ramm

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 37

37

FEATURE | STORY BY CHRIS BOWLING PHOTOS BY BILL SITZMANN

CONSTRUCTING A RENOVATED PLAN

SUPPLY SHORTAGES PUT OMAHA’S DEVELOPERS IN A TIGHT SPOT

T

he COVID-19 pandemic forced many to confront complicated truths about our society. Most people can agree on one fact—it’s been bad for business. But for homebuilders such as Ted Ramm, even that’s hard to apply when talking about the construction market.

In some ways, construction has always been about balancing spinning plates. Builders are made based on their abilities to do the basics—do good work, make deadlines, and pay their people on time.

Meanwhile they have to get in with land developers and build relationships with suppliers.

Ramm and his brother, Jerry, own Ramm Construction. With low interest rates and so many people either upgrading or buying homes, the company has built more homes in the Omaha metro area than ever in the 22 years they’ve been in business.

For a long time, missing those interpersonal relationships was the only thing that really had an effect on builders, said Ryan Spellman, real estate developer with J Development.

At the same time, demand is running against a limited supply of construction materials. Lumber, plastics, washing machines, doorknobs, pretty much anything needed to build something is either in limited supply or at all-time high prices.

It’s pushing some builders to pump the brakes or raise prices by hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars depending on the project.

And unlike a vaccine, there’s no cure-all to set the market straight. This industry is built on hedging relationships and guesswork market analysis to get the best prices, and the stakes have been raised.

“All that stuff makes our industry even more challenging,” Ted Ramm said. “I mean, we took it for granted, before, when the materials were available.”

“COVID has really kind of robbed a lot of those interpersonal relationships,” Spellman said. “Almost everything’s done over Zoom or Microsoft Teams now, and a lot of those in-person meetings that were so valuable in the past, and where you really got to know somebody and really got to work through problems together, it’s not that it’s totally gone, but it’s certainly taken a hit.”

Outside of that, construction was one of the few types of work able to resume mostly as normal. With fewer cars on the roads, more street maintenance projects were undertaken. In the housing world, more people decided the pandemic was the right time to upgrade to a home with more space for gyms or one or more offices.

CONT. PAGE 38

38 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

Thanks Omaha for over 35 Years!

TRADITIONALLY RAMM LOCKS THE PROJECT’S PRICE WHEN THE CONTRACT’S SIGNED. WITHOUT KNOWING WHAT COMMODITY PRICES WILL LOOK LIKE BY THE TIME HE’S BUILT OR FINISHED THE HOME, HE’S GOT NO WAY OF KNOWING HOW MUCH PROFIT HE’LL END UP WITH. FROM PAGE 37 Builders still ran up against issues with manual labor shortages—compounded now with workers missing days after catching COVID-19—as well as having to limit the number of contracts they could take.

®

It wasn’t until a few months ago that commodity prices began to spike. Because factories had slowed production, stockpiles of lumber and plastics dwindled slowly until they bottlenecked around last summer, putting prices on a rapid upward trajectory that hasn’t stopped since.

2021 Winner

402.399.9233 | WWW.SPARKLINGKLEAN.COM

New developments keep coming. Recently a 1,300foot cargo ship, almost as long as the Empire State Building is tall, backed up traffic in the Suez Canal.

A once-in-a-lifetime snowstorm in Texas also caused pipe, roof, and other kinds of damage to thousands of homes.

All these factors cause commodities like lumber to reach historic heights, costing more than double than it has at any point in the last 25 years. That’s baffling to someone like Ramm. “[It brings out] some anger, some disbelief,” he said.

“But I guess to an extent we’ve been conditioned to, I don’t know, expect the unexpected, or, you know, be flexible and look for new solutions.”

Serving the Great Customers of Omaha for 76 Years!

Thank You

2021 Winner

for Voting Us #1 for 10 Years!

Nefftowing.com | 402.733.5500 4315 South 50th Street

Omaha’s Premier Executive Office Suites • • • • •

Private Offices Professional Cleaning Crew Fully Furnished (Optional) 5 High Tech Conference Rooms Virtual Offices W/Mailing addresses

ENTERPRISEOMAHA.COM

OMAHAMAGAZINE.COM JUNE · JULY | 39

Builders have found ways to maneuver around these problems. Those tight relationships they built with local suppliers have kept them stocked. And if they find that the kinds of light fixtures or laundry machines they wanted aren’t available, they look around until they find new ones.

Other things don’t provide that wiggle room.

Builders can’t find an alternative to lumber, for example. Traditionally Ramm locks the project’s price when the contract’s signed. Without knowing what commodity prices will look like by the time he’s built or finished the home, he’s got no way of knowing how much profit he’ll end up with.

Bigger builders working on longer deadlines have a few more options to keep business moving.

Incentives such as tax increment financing, a government program that gives developers tax breaks for up to 20 years, and contractual options to keep prices flexible provide a little more room to breathe. Spellman, however, said ultimately if commodity prices continue to soar it could drive up rent in new apartment buildings so companies like his can recoup their losses.

2021 Winner

Spellman doesn’t think that’s the future staring down Omaha.

Omaha’s steady, modest growth over the past few decades have shielded it from economic downturns in the past. Spellman hopes that once again the city can weather another economic storm without too much financial fall out.

“I don’t know exactly what’s going to happen with this COVID-19 construction material hiccup that we’re going through, but I do believe it’s a hiccup,” Spellman said. “I’m glass-half-full on it. And I think things will...straighten out a bit over the course of the next handful of months...You know, I think we’ll ultimately get back to normal.”

Visit rammconstruction.com and j-dev.com for more information.

• 24 Hour Emergency Service • No Commisions Earned by Our Techs = Fair Treatment to Our Customers • 3rd Generation Family Owned Business • Residential and Commercial Contractor

10 YEAR

• Over 70 years in business

PARTS & LABOR WARRANTY ON NEW EQUIPMENT

B2B

UP TO

$1000

off

3RD GENERATION FAMILY OWNED BUSINESS

A NEW SYSTEM (based on qualifying system)

402.391.2336 soshvac.com

2021 Winner

8314 Maple St. Omaha, NE 68134

40 | B2B MAGAZINE · 2021

VOLUME 21 · ISSUE 3

OMAHA CVB BY DEBORAH WARD

UNIQUE HOTELS JOIN OMAHA’S TOURISM LANDSCAPE espite the challenges of the last year, events are beginning to populate Omaha’s calendar, attractions are ready for the summer travel season, and restaurants are open at full capacity, making the city a more desirable travel destination.

Thanks to new boutique collections, visitors will have access to some of the most unique hotels in the Midwest. Kimpton, Curio, and Autograph are nationally known, high-end hotels joining Omaha’s tourism community, and each will offer convention and leisure visitors a strikingly different experience.

D

These five hotels are all scheduled to open by the end of this summer (one opened in 2020).

• Kimpton Cottonwood Hotel— The 205-room property is the result of a $75 million renovation of the historic Blackstone Hotel, a 1920s landmark once renowned as the premier stopover between coasts (opened November 2020).

• Hotel Indigo—Omaha’s bootlegging history will be on display at Hotel Indigo, a 90-room property surrounded by museums, music, and fine dining.

• The Peregrine Hotel Omaha Downtown, Curio Collection by Hilton—This 106-year-old historic building has undergone a $14.6 million renovation. The 89-room property will feature a six-story art deco mural of the popular feathered falcons.

• The Farnam Hotel, Autograph Collection—A boutique property in the Old Market offering 11-foot ceilings and a panoramic view of downtown with floor-toceiling windows.

• Tru by Hilton and Home2 Suites—A rare dual property will contain two different Hilton hotels in one location near Aksarben Village.

As the second half of the year approaches and COVID-19 vaccines become more available, travelers will be ready to get out and start exploring again. In fact, research shows more than half of Americans surveyed already have plans to travel in July. These new hotel properties will offer unique experiences to help Omaha compete for these visitor dollars.

GREATER OMAHA CHAMBER BY DAVID BROWN

SPRINGTIME IN OMAHA IS SPECIAL L

iving in Omaha, you know spring is here when talk of Creighton basketball ends and discussion of the College World Series begins in earnest. This year, we had the added benefit of the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Championship in April, Husker football spring practice, and the spring game that happened May 1.

The U.S. Olympic Swim Trials will take place in June, and we are looking forward to the U.S. Senior Open at Omaha Country Club in July.

What an amazing sports town Omaha has become!

This cornucopia of sports excellence is yet another example of the partnership between the private sector, the public sector, the philanthropic sector, university leadership, the Omaha Sports Commission, and Visit Omaha. The result: We are continually presented with opportunities to see world-class sports.

B2B

Deborah Ward is the acting executive director

David Brown is president and

at Omaha Convention and Visitors Bureau.

CEO of the Greater Omaha Chamber.

This partnership appears to happen seamlessly; but, believe me when I say maintaining these relationships, building our local economy, and building the image of our community only happens because all of the partners have sustained a common vision for delivering enhanced quality of life to all our citizens. Just think about the forethought that had to occur to make sure we had the facilities to support this long list of sporting events. Huge community and philanthropic investments made over the past decades makes it possible today for us to enjoy the spectacle.

Take a moment to thank everyone involved in making these events happen, and let’s not forget that events without avid fans and corporate sponsors do not happen. Pat yourselves on the back for completing the circle and keeping Omaha moving ahead as a terrific place to live, work, and play.

B2B

CELEBRATE THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF

the 2021 Best of B2B Winners & the 2022 Best of Omaha Winners

FEATURING

music, performances, & networking hors d’oeuvres & beverages provided business chic attire requested

21+ ONLY

SAVE THE DATE THURSDAY, OCT. 28, 2021

purchase tickets at localstubs.com/events/soiree2021