5 Cities, 5 Projects to Watch
(La Vista’s 84th Street Redevelopment Project in progress)
This publication would be a 10-pound tome if it dove into every project and development fueling the fastest growing county in the state, and that would just include the projects that have been publicly announced! We took a more economical approach and narrowed in on five projects from the five cities of Sarpy County that encompass the growth in infrastructure, amenities, community, innovation and more. 1. Springfield – Growth Hotspots at Highway 50 and Highway 370 The Sarpy County Economic Development Corporation just announced a rebranding and new name, Grow Sarpy, so it’s no surprise their Executive Director, Andrew Rainbolt, was able to share plenty of insight into Springfield’s growth hotspots along Highway 50 and Highway 370. “Growth in the area has been fairly slow and steady but now we’ve landed the Platteview Road Business Park and of course with Facebook expanding in Papillion and into Springfield’s territory, these are two key projects,” said Rainbolt. The 74-acre site for the business park is southwest of the intersection of Platteview Road and Highway 50 and will be promoted for light industrial and other similar uses to create employment and investment in Sarpy County. “It’s real estate space we’ve lacked in our market and what the project does for Springfield is show it’s a viable place to invest,” Rainbolt said of the business park, “I know they’ve got a lot of interest at this point and I’m confident they’ll be building some more buildings in the near future. Facebook’s growing presence along 370 helps in building the infrastructure they need to expand but it will be the completion of the sewer system expansion that Rainbolt cited as the accelerator for booming growth in 2025 and beyond. Rainbolt also sees the data centers as having a significant impact on Springfield’s school district in the years to come. “The data centers have brought in tons of valuation which brings in a large influx of tax base.
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That should bode well for their district and give them more resources and drive more housing development.” 2. La Vista – 84th Street Development Over 10 years ago the La Vista City Council approved the Vision 84 Plan which drafted the original vision for development along 84th Street. La Vista Mayor Doug Kindig saw shifts in the renderings of the project over the years, but the mission to meet the needs and desires of La Vista citizens remained the same. “We went to the citizens and asked what they want, and what the identified was a downtown area,” said Kindig, “We did well over a year of research and talking to citizens and holding public meetings before the Vision 84 Plan was ever voted on.” After years of careful planning, the 84th Street redevelopment kicked into high-gear when Omaha-Based developer, City Ventures, purchased the Brentwood Crossing property. The city participated in demolition and grading for site preparation as well as construction of public improvements. “We’re very fortunate to have them invest in our city and be a true partner along with the city to make this development come true,” said Kindig of working with the developer. The transformation of the space into City Centre will include office and residential space lofted above more than 200,000 square feet of neighborhood retail, dining and entertainment space. For Kindig, taking the time to create long-term planning on finance and infrastructure was key to seeing the project through. 3. Gretna—Gretna Crossing Park Having been in progress for 11 years, the Gretna Crossing Park has had a creation timeline similar to La Vista’s City Centre. Citizen input has also been just as vital. “Gretna has always valued community, open spaces, relationships and pride in all we do,” said Gretna Mayor Mike Evans, “The project’s process matched those values by including all
2021-2022 Magazine and Member Directory
