OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — The Omaha City Council approved a consultant that will create a "Climate Action and Resilience" plan for the city.
The council voted 4-3 in favor. The councilmembers who were opposed voted instead to delay a vote until April 4, saying they wanted more time to review the proposal and other options. They were Brinker Harding, Don Rowe, and Aimee Melton.
The city received eight proposals before narrowing it to four options.
Ultimately, a Minnesota climate group, paleBLUEdot, was selected and approved at Tuesday's meeting. It will be paid about $375,000, which the city says will come from a federal grant. It has developed climate plans for several other cities, including Dallas and Ames, Iowa.
PaleBLUEdot will partner with local architectural firm HDR.
Work on a request for bids to hire the consultant had been underway since April 2021, Mayor Jean Stothert said in September.
Sept. 21, 2022: Mayor Stothert says progress on Omaha climate action plan not slow
The city council originally signaled its support for a climate action plan in November 2021.
Nov. 23, 2021: Omaha votes in support of climate action plan
The city council reaffirmed its support in September last year. It pushed the city to find a consultant by the end of the year.
Sept. 13, 2022 Omaha City Council reafirms support for climate plan
Then, the progress on the plan drew criticism for being too slow, including from City Council President Pete Festersen.
PaleBLUEdot's proposal and the now-approved resolution is here.
Download our apps today for all of our latest coverage.
Get the latest news and weather delivered straight to your inbox.
