OmahaNebraska.com interviewed Omaha mayor, Jean Stothert, after the College World Series Pre-Game Press Conference.
There have been many changes over the last many years from Rosenblatt to here. What are some of the more noticeable changes and what were your favorite changes?
Well, I mean we built a brand-new stadium, a brand-new state of the art stadium to keep the College World Series for 25 years. And so there’s been just a multitude of changes. But I think the most important thing is working with the CWS and the NCAA and MECA that we were able to create a state of the art stadium that will keep the College World Series here for years.
What my parts are my favorite? I would say I love this out here [motions to the entire stadium] that it gives people a lot more room to walk around. I love the big screen. I love how the seating is. It’s just a beautiful stadium so it all works together.
Do you have any favorite baseball memories? I am sure that it’s hard to pick just one or two.
I can’t say that I have one favorite memory. I enjoyed coming in College World Series when it was at Rosenblatt.
I was here for the first game in the new stadium. I think from Omahan perspective, I think one of my favorite memories would have to be sitting in this stadium for the first time.
That’s wonderful. I know that it contributes quite a bit to the economic development of Omaha.
It’s estimated that the College World Series brings in between 75 and 80 million dollars.
And so you know, those years that we didn’t have it because of the pandemic . . . the trickle down was enormous because the hotels weren’t filled, the restaurants weren’t filled, bars weren’t filled. It made a big impact. I thought last year showed that because the first year was back in person we had record breaking crowds, and everybody just wanted to get out and be outside and enjoy some activity. And so, it really just encouraged people to be out again, and the College World Series is something that I think Omahans love and can’t wait for every year.
It’s been wonderful to watch all these things grow and develop and now Gene Leahy Mall is getting its refresh. Can you tell us a little about what is coming up please?
Sure, there’s 90 acres of city owned property. It’s the Gene Leahy Mall. Go east Heartland of America Park and then you go north to Lewis and Clark Park Landing. That whole area. We are working in cooperation with the private sector. And when it’s all done, it’s going to be about a $400 million project and the city put in $50 million and the rest is private. And so that just really shows that the good public private partnerships that we have in Omaha and the investment that is going on in Omaha right now.
The Gene Leahy Mall will open the first of July, and it’s fantastic. We’ve raised it up to the street level so it’s usable. It’s usable for events. The old mall was pretty, but you couldn’t use it for anything. I think when people get in it, they are going to love it.
I toured it the other day and it’s gorgeous. It has something for everybody. And then it will go on down to Heartland of America Park which will connect us right to the river. That’s our most important geographic feature we have. We live on the river, so that park will go all the way down to the river and then north to Lewis and Clark Landing where a beautiful new STEM museum will be down there that Kiewit is the major funder. That portion of it, Heartland and Lewis and Clark Landing, should be open by August of next year. So everything is moving along. They are right on schedule. They’re keeping it within budget. And it will be done. And it’s going to just spur development downtown and it already has. With Mutual of Omaha coming downtown now and there’s a new hotel in the Landmark. There’s a lot of other investors looking at downtown because of what we are building downtown. We are pretty much building a new downtown.
It looks so different, but then a lot of the favorite features are still there.
Yes.
Everyone is so happy that you kept the arch and the slides.
Oh, yeah. Yeah, we wanted to incorporate everything in there and it will remain the Gene Leahy Mall.
Thank you.
