A major infrastructure project planned for northwest Omaha is designed to bring a decades-old interchange in line with rapid growth in the area, but not without some short-term disruptions for drivers. The Nebraska Department of Transportation (NDOT) is preparing for a significant reconstruction of the Interstate 680 corridor between Fort Street and the Blair High Road interchange. According to NDOT District 2 project delivery engineer Damion Stern, the goal is to transform what was once a rural-style highway into a modern, urbanized roadway built to handle today’s traffic demands. “The majority of this project is going to compress the area between Fort Street and Blair High Road,” Stern said. “Right now, it’s a four-lane divided highway and we’re going to more or less reconstruct it and urbanize it.” Plans call for adding a lane in both directions, installing a median barrier, upgrading storm sewer systems and redesigning portions of the interchange. New loop ramps, that are...

Omaha’s Central Library opens to the public today on the southwest corner of 72nd & Dodge Street. Mayor John Ewing will cut the ribbon at 12:30 p.m. The $158 million library marks the largest private investment in a public library system in the United States in many years. It is the first public library in the country to have an “Automated Storage and Retrieval System,” a 3-story, secured, climate-controlled system can store more than 600,000 materials, allowing the library system to grow its collection without being limited by shelf space in branches. The library combines traditional library services with state-of-the-art amenities, including the integration of the former Do Space into the Omaha Public Library system (with 3D printers, sewing and quilting machines, a video studio, podcast studio and more). The genealogy and local history sections are on the 3rd floor, offering a large space for anyone researching their family or community’s history. Counting a mezzanine level...