Weekly Market Report – July 28, 2022

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Restaurant & Retail Updates

Hacienda Real opened for business this past Monday in a former Old Chicago space at 78th & Cass Street on the north end of Tower Plaza. The Mexican restaurant has two existing locations in Lincoln.

Elevated Coffee Co. at 2851 Capehart Road in Bellevue is adding a craft beer tap house this fall in the retail bay next door. According to the company’s website, “You can expect the best local beer, wine, liquor, boozy coffee drinks and expanded food options.”

Jojo’s Diner is getting close to opening its Old Market location. The new location is described as a “downtown diner-style delicatessen” and will open in the former Craft Sliders + Beer location at 1213 Harney Street. The original Jojo’s is in Benson. A second location opened a few months ago near 132nd & West Maple Road.

The Jersey Mike’s Subs quick-serve restaurant at 1303 South 72nd Street in the Shoppes at Aksarben has been completely remodeled to reflect the company’s latest branding and design themes.

Reboot I.T. Computer Repair plans to open at 10701 Mockingbird Street in Mockingbird Plaza.

Hotworx plans to open a location soon at Shadow Lake Town Center in Papillion. The company offers hot yoga, pilates and other virtually instructed exercise programs. Hotworx has several existing metro area locations.

The “Restaurant & Retail Updates” section is sponsored by Anderson Convenience Market, featuring Quality AMOCO Fuels and serving Omaha since 1952, and proud to announce the return of Quality Amoco Fuels. Look for changes this Summer at Anderson Convenience Market – 8 Omaha area locations!

Learn more about Anderson Convenience market at www.Anderson1952.com

So Much Real Estate Development Revolves Around 3 Library Buildings

New Start Date Set for W. Dale Clark Demolition

It’s a game of library “musical chairs,” and the consequences are much bigger than just a collection of books.

As we have previously reported, the City of Omaha is moving its downtown library services from the W. Dale Clark library building at 14th & Farnam Street in order to make way for Mutual of Omaha’s $600 million headquarters skyscraper.

Circulation and back-office functions will move to a former Shopko store near 84th & Frederick Street. Books and services for the public are moving to leased space in an historic building under renovation at 1401Jones Street. The original plan was to open the Jones Street building this fall, but the opening date has been moved to March 1st.

The city will lease a temporary space at 1410 Howard Street for six months to provide library services while construction on the new downtown library branch on Jones Street is completed.

The temporary location at 1410 Howard will open September 1st to provide branch services including materials checkout and return, computer access, scanning, copying, printing and fax. Meeting rooms and programs (such as children’s’ reading programs) will not be available during this interim period.

The temporary Howard Street location will be staffed by OPL employees currently at W. Dale Clark. The hours will be the same as the current hours at W. Dale Clark.

Construction on the Jones Street building is continuing. The additional time is needed to complete unanticipated structural improvements to the two-story building in order to support the library materials and display features. The cost of the building improvements will be paid by the owner, White Lotus Group of Omaha.

The four-story W. Dale Clark library building will close to the public toward the end of August. At that time, Hallett & Sons Expert Movers, Inc. will begin to transfer library materials and equipment.

This will allow Cox Contracting to start demolition of the W. Dale Clark building on October 1st, a couple months earlier than originally expected. The sooner the current library building is removed, the sooner construction can begin on the Mutual of Omaha tower.

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Omaha is ranked #20 on Livability’s “Best Places to Live in the US in 2022.” Livability examined 2,300 cities based on 50 data points. Omaha is the highest ranked city in Nebraska and the largest city to make the top 100 (some cities on the list are technically smaller than Omaha but are part of larger metro areas such as Minneapolis, Salt Lake City, Pittsburgh and Cincinnati).

The top 3 cities were (in order) Madison, Wis.; Ann Arbor, Mich.; and Rochester, Minn. What about other cities in our region? Overland Park, Kan. was #5. Minneapolis was 6th. Sioux Falls, S.D. was 38th. Lincoln was #54. Des Moines, Iowa was #90.

CNBC has ranked Nebraska #7 on its list of the 10 best places to live in 2022. Here’s the top 10: 1. Vermont; 2. Maine; 3. Hawaii; 4. North Dakota; 5. Minnesota; 6. Washington; 7. Nebraska; 8. (tie) New Jersey; 8. (tie) Oregon; 10. Iowa.

YMCA of Greater Omaha held a ribbon cutting earlier this month for its newest location in partnership with the new Westview High School near 156th & Ida Street.

The Commercial Real Estate Summit has announced its 2022 Development of the Year award will go to Jason Fisher for the Farnam Hotel, part of the overall renovation of the Landmark Building at 14th & Farnam Street. The 2022 Deal of the Year goes to John Lund for Blackstone Plaza at 35th & Farnam Street. Formerly Kiewit’s headquarters, Blackstone Plaza has been converted into a multi-tenant office building.

At least 100 teens, mostly in Omaha and Lincoln, will be offered a jump-start to a career in the construction industry as the result of a $150,000 Google grant, according to Nebraska Examiner. The global technology giant, which has multiple data centers in the Omaha metro area, announced a partnership with the Nebraska chapter of the Associated Builders and Contractors that will provide pre-apprentice training to high school seniors and recent graduates.

The City of Omaha plans to sell the 7-acre former Civic Auditorium site downtown to White Lotus, an Omaha-based real estate development company, for $1.5 million. White Lotus plans to create Civic Corner, a mixed-use development that would have 268 market-rate apartment units, 120 affordable units and 25 for-sale townhouses.

In our latest Grow Omaha Construction Update, Brad Williams shows you projects under development all over town, but the highlight just might be the slide show at the end. Watch it HERE now!

Grow Omaha Snippets are brought to you by Omaha Car Care with four metro area locations – 131st & Dodge, 58th & Center, 85th & L and 144th & Harrison.

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Eagle Mortgage is a locally owned, full-service mortgage company helping you with Conventional, VA, FHA and USDA loans in both Nebraska & Iowa, including the Omaha-Council Bluffs area.

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Real Estate News from CoStar – Amazon roiled the real estate world earlier this year when it said it would slow its pace of warehouse leasing and begin to sublet some of the tens of millions of square feet it had committed to as part of its pandemic-era expansion. But the fallout may not be as dire as some initially feared. The pullback could say more about a strategic shift than a retreat from real estate. The company has spent billions of dollars over the past couple of years to buy undeveloped land as well as properties for conversion to logistics centers, signaling it may have designs on leasing less and owning more in coming years.

Amazon spent $2.3 billion to acquire dozens of properties totaling more than 5,000 acres since early 2020. Included in that tally are nearly 400 acres it has bought over the past three months, a period in which Amazon has scrapped or postponed large office and industrial projects across the nation and revealed plans to shrink its U.S. footprint of delivery and fulfillment centers by millions of square feet.

Welcome to the recession. The U.S. Commerce Department reported earlier today that U.S. Gross Domestic Product shrank at a 0.9 percent annual pace during the second quarter. That makes two consecutive quarters of shrinking GDP, the longstanding definition of a recession. The economy contracted at a 1.6 percent annual rate during the first quarter of this year.

First National Bank of Omaha has acquired SAF Holdings and SAF’s Omaha subsidiary AmeriFirst Home Improvement Finance, according to the Omaha World-Herald. AmeriFirst will keep its name and operate as a division of FNBO. AmeriFirst is an originator and servicer of consumer home improvement loans.

The Omaha Commercial real estate market remains healthy despite inflation, supply chain issues and a recessionary national economy. According to the most recent NAI NP Dodge Omaha market report, office vacancy is down to 8 percent, retail vacancy is down to 5 percent, and industrial vacancy is down to 3.1 percent. All of these numbers are lower than the previous quarter and historically are quite healthy. You can read the entire report HERE.

AMCON Distributing Company, an Omaha-based consumer products company, has declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.18 per common share. This cash dividend is payable on August 29, 2022 to shareholders of record as of August 5, 2022.

Applied Underwriters, which is building a corporate headquarters campus near 144th & Pacific Street, announced the formation of Applied Entertainment & Sports, a new division of the company that will be headquartered in Los Angeles with a satellite office in New York.

Scoular has donated $500,000 to help fund the nation’s largest research dairy center at the University of Idaho. Omaha-based Scoular provides agricultural supply chain solutions worldwide and offers custom dairy feed solutions throughout its network.

Farmland values in the first half of 2022 benefitted from continued profitability in agriculture, according to Omaha-based Farm Credit Services of America. The rate of increase slowed compared to last year’s double-digit hikes. Even so, the average value for farmland is at all-time highs in Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota and Wyoming. Values are strong for high quality cropland, and stable to slightly higher for average-to-below-average land.

Union Pacific signed an historic deal with Pittsburgh-based Wabtec Corporation for 600 locomotive modernizations featuring a suite of digital solutions and innovations. The agreement, worth more than $1 billion, is the largest investment in modernized locomotives in rail industry history, and part of Omaha-based Union Pacific’s fleet strategy to move more freight efficiently and sustainably across its 23-state service territory.

Werner Enterprises, Inc. has announced a recent $150 million settlement of a motor vehicle accident lawsuit in Texas. The accident occurred in May of 2020. According to a Werner press release, the investigating officers placed no fault on Werner or its driver. Omaha-based Werner disputes the plaintiffs’ allegations but chose to voluntarily resolve the matter by settlement.

This section is sponsored by FranNet of The Heartland, the local, trusted franchise experts. They are “in the business of helping you get into business!”

Leadership & Management

There are several key differences between being a boss and a leader according to business author Andy Paul. Here are a few:

A boss is process first; a leader is people first

A boss trains for techniques; a leader develops capabilities

A boss enforces compliance; a leader enables constructive non-conformity

A boss is a risk avoider; a leader is a risk taker

A boss focuses on persuasion; a leader focuses on influence

A boss is a know-it-all; a leader is a learn-it-all

A boss says, “my way or the highway;” a leader says “whatever is the fastest way I can help you”

A boss inspires anxiety; a leader inspires change

A boss gives orders; a leader coaches for problem-solving

A boss applies pressure; a leader encourages accountability

Sales

I’ve been hearing the word “grit” quite a bit lately:

1. I read an article this week about how sales professionals need to show grit in the face of today’s macro-economic challenges.

2. My friend’s son was wearing a t-shirt for his youth sports team, which said “GRIT & DETERMINATION.”

3. Back in April, one of my clients asked me to talk about grit and perseverance during my keynote speech at their annual sales conference.

Why so much “grit” talk?

Probably because we need grit now more than ever. While there are still tremendous opportunities in this market, we are flying into a lot of head winds.

Grit is defined as “bravery, determination and courage despite difficulty.” For perspective on what grit means, consider a few quotes:

“Grit is having the courage to push through, no matter what the obstacles are, because it is worth it” – Chris Morris

“Grit is sticking with your future day in, day out and not just for the week, not just for the month, but for years.” – Angela Lee Duckworth

“True grit is making a decision and standing by it, doing what must be done. No moral man can have peace of mind if he leaves undone what he knows he should have done.” – John Wayne

“Grit is not just simple elbow-grease term for rugged persistence. It is an often invisible display of endurance that lets you stay in an uncomfortable place, work hard to improve upon a given interest and do it again and again.” – Sarah Lewis

Would you close bigger sales if you showed more grit? Do you need to get a little saltier in your career? If you would benefit by getting a little grittier, I have a few action steps for you.

Look for the Positive – We associate grit with the ability and willingness to fight through something negative and win. In order to do that, it helps to be positive. If you believe that you will win/benefit/thrive in the end, it’s easier to dig deep and find the strength to keep going.

Responsibility, Authority, Accountability – These three words determine whether a person succeeds or fails in life or business. The most effective people know they have responsibility for their own lives and decisions. They appreciate the fact that they have full authority to carry out those responsibilities, They show accountability by accepting blame when due and graciously accepting credit when its deserved.

People who live their lives according to responsibility, authority and accountability have a stronger foundation upon which they can stand when the going gets tough.

Take the Initiative – This means you’re assertive and proactive. Think about it: gritty people don’t sit back and wait for things to happen to them.

Adopt Role Models – No matter how seasoned or successful you are, you can still benefit by studying the actions of accomplished people. It’s foolish to “reinvent the wheel,” so study how other people have exhibited grit.

Preparation – Finally, I recommend you always prepare for what lies ahead. It’s much easier to shine during dark times when you get ready in advance. My favorite quote about preparation comes from the late Paul “Bear” Bryant, a legendary college football coach: “It’s not the will to win that matters. Everyone has that. It’s the will to prepare to win that matters.”

Wisdom

“Great leaders do not desire to lead but to serve.” – Myles Munroe

“It doesn’t matter when we start. It doesn’t matter where we start. All that matters is that we start.” – Simon Sinek

Grow Omaha University is sponsored by MyStaff Inc, a locally owned staffing firm whose purpose is helping Nebraska companies recruit for corporate office positions.

My Staff Inc – Our team helps you find yours!

Maha Festival 2022 on July 29 & 30 at Stinson Park: Experience 15 artists on two stages, pop-up comedy and art performances, food and drinks with special Omaha flavor, and tons more to see and do at the 14th annual Maha Festival! Happening on July 29 from 5:00 to 11:00pm and July 30 from 1:00pm to Midnight at the Aksarben Village in Omaha.

Live on the Lawn on July 29th from 6 to 9 pm at Lake Zorinksy: What better way to spend a summer evening than listening to live music in the park? Live on the Lawn is a FREE, family-friendly summer concert series presented by the City of Omaha Parks and Recreation Department. This week’s show features Lemon Fresh Day!

Final Showing of “Day by Day” Husker Documentary on July 29 from 6 to 9pm at The Granary From 1993 to 1997 the Nebraska Cornhuskers football program would have one of the most dominant eras in college football history. Plagued with controversy, injuries, and tragedy. What was more amazing than the three national titles in four years was how they did it. This limited local run showcasing Part 1 of “Day By Day” documentary series is only showing at the all new Granary Green in Ralston.

Leashes at Lauritzen on August 1 from 5 to 8 pm at Lauritzen Gardens: Dogs love going on an adventure- make your next night out with your four-legged friend an evening garden stroll during Leashes at Lauritzen. These events are enjoyable nights for dogs to walk the trails, meet other dogs, to take photos among the flowers and foliage, and meet other dog lovers.

Web3.0 August Open Lunch on August 4 from 12-1pm at Modus Coworking: Startup Grind Omaha and First National Bank of Omaha are hosting a casual monthly lunch meetup as a space for creators, innovators, and the crypto-curious to discuss all things Web3.0 .Come connect and make friends with others that are interested in decentralization, ownership, cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and blockchain technology.

Open Omaha on August 6 & 7 across the Metro: For one weekend only — August 6th – 7th — dozens of historic landmarks, creative spaces, sacred sites, and other hidden gems will open their doors in a city-wide showcase of the uniqueness that makes the Omaha-Council Bluffs metro such a marvelous place. Want to help make this a great event? They can use your help as a volunteer!

Grow Omaha University is sponsored by MyStaff Inc, a locally owned staffing firm whose purpose is helping Nebraska companies recruit for corporate office positions.

My Staff Inc – Our team helps you find yours!

Right at Home has named Susan Haynes as CEO. She formerly served as Chief Operating Officer and has been with the company since 2011. Right at Home is a franchise network of independently owned offices providing senior care and elder assistance. The Omaha-based company has offices throughout the United States and seven other countries.

Lee Sorrick and Sarah Yroski of Union Pacific have been named by Progressive Railroading as two of the 25 Rising Stars for 2022. The magazine defines a Rising Star as someone under the age of 40 who is making a positive impact on his or her company, organization, department or team, and is viewed by others as an up-and-coming leader in the rail industry. Yroski and Sorrick were chosen from a pool of more than 140 nominees.

RCG, an Omaha-based advertising and media company, has named Brad Eubanks as creative director, replacing the retired Steve Armbruster. Eubanks most recently served as senior creative director for a marketing agency in Chicago.

Cobalt Credit Union has added Lisa Kohler as vice president of internal audit and compliance and Mitchel Inman as an information security officer.

In Memorian – One of Omaha’s most legendary real estate developers has died. Frank Krejci, who was most recently partnering with Lockwood Development on The Crossroads project, passed away this week at age 97. An Omaha native, Krejci served in the U.S. Army during World War II. He started his first business at age 21 and bought his first piece of property in 1950 at 30th & Sprague Street. He went on to develop countless real estate projects around the metro area.

The “People in the News” section is sponsored by Baird Holm LLP. Baird Holm’s dedicated team of real estate lawyers has extensive experience in all aspects of real estate law, including purchases, sales, zoning and land use, leasing, and dispute resolution. Click HERE for more information.

The Grow Omaha radio show broadcasts live every Saturday morning at 9:00, but now you can watch videos of each episode instead of just listening.

Grow Omaha’s brand-new website features video footage shot inside the radio studio during each week’s show!

Videos include News of the Week, Lightning Round, guest interviews, and “Grow Omaha Uncut,” a behind-the-scenes look at what happens during commercial breaks.

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