OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — If you don't live downtown, you might not think about the 16th Street sinkhole, but neighbors have been living with it since January and are getting creative to keep it in the spotlight.
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A mudslide at Mercury, a burger at Block 16, and at Cattle Call – ‘Sinkhole de Mayo’.
A beach-themed block party brought beach balls, leis, and even sunshine.
"We are all decked out, ready for the beach party," said Josh Murphy, a 16th Street neighbor since 2016.
"It's fun honestly it's kind of a kick-off to summer," said neighbor David Phillips.
It captured the attention of people passing by, many stopping to take photos and even toss some cheese to the sinkhole rats.
But behind the sarcastic fun, neighbors have a serious message.
"You know we are just trying to make people aware, like you know, help us, please," said Lisa Kilker, a Regis resident.
For three years Lisa Kilker has lived in the Regis building, next to the hole. This night, she was the party planner.
"To bring awareness to the sinkhole and to also bring people down here so they can see it for themselves, you know because it's, once you see it in person, it's extremely overwhelming and you're like oh my gosh, how in the world is this even here," Kilker said.
"The city needed to do something a long time ago," said Tom Lamme, a 16th Street neighbor.
They’ve turned the sinkhole into a billboard for political messages recently and this party brought another.
"We are dealing with people who are, 'Oh it's not my fault, it's your fault because you live there, it's your fault', this is what this party is about, we live here, this party is our fault," Lamme said.
"It's just kind of part of our streets lore now, it's you know a part of us, but hopefully it does get fixed soon," Phillips said.
People here are still open for conversation with the city about closing this hole in the road.
"I am just honestly speechless at what's going to even happen because we don't even know, it's just all unknown right now," Kilker said.
