Downtown
Continued from Page 1
Wilson said Lincoln could support
one large retail area, and the commu
nity generally preferred malls.
Wilson called the concept of down
town Lincoln as a major retail center
“very good,” but said it was realized
at the wrong time.
“I think the shopper in Lincoln
was very pleased with the Gateway
Mall and would not have wanted to
support another retail base,” he said.
Until 1989, the main function of
the downtown association was to pro
mote its existing businesses to poten
tial customers. But the association
realized that it had to change its focus.
“We needed to get very involved in
what we thought downtown was and
what it needed to become,” Shields
said.
The association began working
with city and county government and
members of the downtown business
community to rejuvenate downtown
Lincoln.
The DLA and its associates cre
ated the Business Improvement Dis
trict in 1989. Shields said the district
allowed businesses to tax themselves
in order to finance downtown's reju
venation.
However, the district's main focus
remained on promoting downtown
Lincoln as a retail center. In 1992, the
association reassessed its situation,
and “kind of stopped and started over,”
she said. The association explored
the idea of promoting downtown Lin
coln as a more broadly based facility
and shifted its focus to that.
Lincoln's advantages
Lincoln was more prepared than
most cities to revitalize its down
town, Shields said. Its central loca
tion between the university and the
Capitol helped.
“There are so many components to
downtown,” she said.
The location is closely related to
the other major reason for downtown's
success — its “mixed-use” function
that provides more than just major
retail, she said.
Downtown visitors find a variety
of things to meet any want or need,
such as entertainment, dining, lodg
i ng and a multitude of small retailers.
Those businesses attract enough
consumers that downtown can thrive
without major retailers, she said.
New growth
“I moved downtown in 1988, and
the streets were quiet at night. That’s
not true anymore,’’ said Kay Davis,
director of finances and administra
tion for the DLA, and president of the
Downtown Neighborhood Associa
tion.
She’s not complaining. Davis said
there were more retail, entertainment
and restaurants downtown than when
she first moved here. That’s impor
tant because downtown residents need
to have those services nearby.
“I think people who live down
town are different from people who
live in the suburbs," she said. "Down
town people get out more often to use
downtown services.”
The shortage of maior retailers
has allowed more growth for smaller
businesses, she said.
That growth is the product of much
time and money. The DLA, local
government and members of the busi
ness community put in “hundreds of
hours to establish a strong position
for downtown,’’ Shields said
The work has paid off.
“In the last two years, we have
filled close to 250,000 square feet of
space,” she said.
But downtown rejuvcnaiors arcn i
satisfied with their accomplishments.
They plan to do more.
Another parking garage, Carriage
Park at 12th and L streets, is almost
coi Me.
er improvements are needed
as well. A downtown grocery store
was high on the list of priorities.
She stressed the importance of
maintaining the quality of downtown
Lincoln. Other growth is important
in Lincoln, but it shouldn't be at
downtown's expense.
“We (the community) just want to
be sure that as we grow, we don’t
inadvertently turn our back on the
existing community,” she said.
Rock lots may be paved
By Rabtcci Oltm—w_
Staff Reporter
Paving the largest rock lot on
campus should be a priority park
ing project for the university next
summer, according to recommen
dations the Parking Advisory Com
mittee made on Tuesday.
During its meeting, the com
mittee recommended that three lots
on campus be paved next summer.
The recommendations will be given
to Jack Goebel, the vice chancellor
of business and finance at the Uni
versity of NebraSka-Lincoln.
Mike Cacak, director of trans
portation and parking services at
UNL, said the 500-stall commuter
and resident lot at 19th Street be
tween U and R streets especially
needed paving. The lot, which is
the largest unpaved one on cam
pus, does not drain well after rain
storms.
“The water just sits there,”
Cacak said.
Other lots recommended for
paving were the commuter lot at
10th and V streets and a resident
lot at 21st and Vine streets.
The cost of paving the rock lots
is about $1,000 per stall, Cacak
said.
The committee also recom
mended putting in more lights on
the north side of the East Campus
loop.
During the meeting, Cacak also
commented on the one-year con
tract the university has made with
StarTran to provide students free
bus services.
So far, he said, the contract has
been successful, Cacak said. The
number of riders has increased on
the Holdrege route that runs be
tween City Campus and East Cam
pus.
So many students have been
using the route that a third bus will
be added on Nov. 28 to run Mon
day mornings between 9:30 and
12:30, Cacak said.
Man reported dead was
just sleeping, police say
From Staff Report*
A man reported dead in a bus
shelter near the Nebraska Union on
Tuesday was just taking a nap.
The Lincoln Fire Department’s
Engine No. 1 and Eastern Ambu
lance were called to the bus shelter
west of the union around noon.
The two vehicles responded to an
emergency call about a person who
was not moving in the bus shelter.
Upon arriving at the scene,
firefighters and paramedics found that
the person was sleeping.
“It happens,’’ Lincoln Fire Chief
Michael Merwick said.
The call on Tuesday was not un
usual; the department handles a num
ber of false calls each year.
Emergency services most likely
were called out Tuesday because the
caller probably didn’t want to wake
up a stranger, Merwick said. He said
people found it easier to call emer
gency services.
Merwick said the department fre
quently received false calls for cases
in which someone refused treatment,
was passed out from intoxication or
was sleeping in public.
After determining that the person
does not need help, Merwick said, the
paramedics turn around and head back
to the station.
r Police Report -
Beginning midnight Monday
7:32 am — Security alarm, acci
dental trip.
7:36 am. — Fire alarm, Animal
Sciences Building, accidental trip.
2:26 p.m. — Bike stolen,
Westbrook Music Hall, $315 loss.
6:34 pm — Vandalism/criminal
mischief, 17th and Vine streets, car
window broken, $200 damage.
Beginning midnight Tuesday
12:29 am—Larceny, University
Health Center parking lot, gate arms
taken, $25 loss.
i VXD
B Z G H L
I P I P G D
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