- Omaha City Council voted 6-0 to approve more than $10 million in TIF funding for a project to replace silos with apartments in Hanscom Park
- Most silos near 35th and Vinton will be demolished for a 230-unit, four-building apartment complex
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) – The Omaha City Council voted 6-0 on Tuesday to grant more than $10 million in tax increment funding – or TIF – for a development project that will demolish most of the grain silos near 35th and Vinton in Hanscom Park and replace them with an apartment complex of about 230 units across four buildings.
The TIF funding was approved for a group of developers that includes Patrick Mason. He says that construction is planned to begin later this year, with a goal of completing the project in 2029.
Silos on the south side of the site, closest to I-80, will remain standing for now. Mason said the state has a plan to tear those down as part of a larger master plan.
"It's for the master plan sometime in the 2030s, so to get the state to move that preemptively to something that's planned is really difficult to do," Mason said.
Hanscom Park neighbor Michael Skocz said he has watched the neighborhood change over the years and welcomes the development.
"So I watched Hanscom Park, change and grow," Skocz said. "I'm excited for the project and for the development."
Skocz also addressed the alternative to moving forward.
"Not doing this, it would just lay empty like it has been for years," Skocz said.
Hanscom Park neighbor Andrew Adams said he wants the southernmost silos removed as well.
"Why would we bring in all the heavy equipment to knock down half of the silos, and then leave the other half up?" Adams said.
Despite that concern, Adams said he believes the project will benefit the neighborhood overall.
"Some of my neighbors on 35th Street are concerned about the environmental impact that this might have, but we do need housing in the city of Omaha, and we're excited that this project is being brought about, and we want it to be successful," Adams said.
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