A burgeoning passion for vibrant New Urbanist communities is evident in Omaha, despite the sub-prime debacle. Indeed, the housing crisis has served only to demonstrate the vitality inherent in our downtown core, which has incrementally spread into NoDo and is also shifting into the area south of the Old Market (the northern end of Parkway10) with Dunsany Flats.

What really excites me about this re-urbanization is the energy it has generated, acting as a city-wide catalyst. Downtown developers like Bluestone Development, Redimensions, M/M Development and Shamrock Development are each injecting a New Urbanist mindset into their specific projects while also building upon downtown’s unique sense of place.

As the Qwest Center, Slowdown, Film Streams, 22 Floors and new hotels are now anchoring NoDo, so Dunsany Flats and other developments south of the Old Market are seeking to anchor that neighborhood, especially bridging the gap between the northern end of Parkway10 and the southern end, where Lauritzen Gardens and Henry Doorly Zoo are located.

True to the principles of the New Urbanism, these developments will integrate housing, shops, workplaces, public space, civic facilities and transport infrastructure into engaging yet functional human-scale developments that entail closer-knit walking communities.  At the core of the developers’ philosophy is a belief that people hunger for, and flourish in, places that touch them with gentle reminders of the ideals to which they aspire.  Lofty, yes; but definitely worth aiming for. It is this vitality that for me makes Omaha such a fabulous place to live.

Tags: Bluestone, Dunsany Flats, Film Streams, New Urbanism, Omaha Old Market, Parkway10, Redimensions

Written by Stuart
David Day | Associates
About the Author: Stuart is constantly curious and believes conversation matters, for business, people and community. Feel free to join in...

This entry was posted on Friday, January 9th, 2009 at 1:23 pm and is filed under Branding. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.