Weekly Market Report – November 11, 2021

Tanner’s Bar & Grill at 17330 West Center Road is opening a sister restaurant to be called Capri. Under the same ownership, Capri will serve Italian cuisine and will be connected to Tanner’s. Capri’s main entrance will be on the south side of the building. Management is hoping to open Capri within 30 days.

Nebraska’s first location of Crumbl Cookies is coming soon to Omaha. A store is under development southeast of 168th & West Center Road in a retail strip that already includes Penn Station Subs, First Watch, Taipei and Clancy’s. Crumbl Cookies started in Logan, Utah and now has 264 locations in 36 states. The closest existing locations are in Kansas City and Sioux Falls, S.D.

A Loss for Midtown – J. Coco, the popular New American-style restaurant at 5203 Leavenworth is closing December 31st after 10 years in business. A message on the restaurant’s website hints that a new location at a yet-to-be-disclosed location could be in the works.

The Deviled Egg Company started in 2017 as a delivery and catering business. Now it has new store with indoor seating at 18111 Q Street. The company says you can build your own deviled eggs and eat them like sushi. Grand opening was November 2nd.

Two new retailers are coming to the Old Market. Matilde is an upscale flower shop that opened last Thursday at 421 South 11th Street. Godega Market will be a boutique grocery store on the northeast corner of 11th & Howard opening before the end of the year.

The Council Bluffs Area Chamber of Commerce recently held a ribbon cutting for a new Rexius Nutrition store at 1702 West Broadway. Omaha-based Rexius now has 19 locations in six states.

The “Restaurant & Retail Updates” section is sponsored by Backlot Pizza + Kitchen located near 204th & Q, where you can enjoy Detroit-style pizza, classic favorites and craft cocktails!”

Top 100 Places to Live in America

Omaha ranks #13 on Livability.com’s Top 100 Best Places to Live in 2021.

For the past eight years, Livability has released this data-driven list. The company analyzed more than 1,000 small-to-medium-sized cities on factors such as safety, affordability, economic stability, outdoor recreation, accessibility and community engagement.

With a population of 483,000, Omaha was the largest of the 100 cities to make the list, although some of the cities – such as Tampa, Pittsburgh, Fort Lauderdale – were part of larger metro areas.

Regarding Omaha, Livability said:

“With trendy neighborhoods and a killer live music scene, Omaha, NE is an excellent place to live. Whether you’re a young professional, a growing family or a retiree, you’ll love the low cost of living, the authentic community vibe, the ease of getting around and the abundant outdoor and entertainment options. Plus, Omaha has an innovative food scene, lots of craft breweries and top-notch museums like the Joslyn Art Museum and The Durham Museum.”

If you were going to spend a weekend in Omaha, Livability recommends:

“Head to The Old Market neighborhood for some leisurely shopping and lunch at M’s Pub, walk or ride bikes along the Missouri River (be sure to check out “Bob,” the 3,000-foot-long pedestrian suspension bridge), then catch a concert at The Down Under or Slowdown.”

The top five cities (in order) were Madison, Wisc.; Ann Arbor, Mich.; Overland Park, Kan.; Frederick, Md.; and Charlottesville, Va.

Here are a few cities from our region of the country and their rankings:

#9 Colorado Springs, Colo.
#18 Lincoln, Neb.
#20 Sioux Falls, S.D.
#36 Aurora, Colo.
#40 Columbia, Mo.
#42 Fort Collins, Colo.
#58 Iowa City, Iowa
#64 Ames, Iowa
#74 Fargo, N.D.
#77 Bismarck, N.D.
#81 Manhattan, Kan.
#84 Lawrence, Kan.
#92 Longmont, Colo.
#93 Des Moines, Iowa

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White Lotus Group, developer of the former Omaha Civic Auditorium site, plans to add between 20 and 25 for-sale townhomes to the proposed mixed-use project, according to a plan approved by the Omaha Planning Board last week. Previous plans included only rental units. White Lotus plans to develop the 9-acre site into commercial, residential and civic uses. There has been some talk that a smaller downtown branch of the Omaha Public Library could end up on the site.

Construction is progressing nicely on the Dahlman Rows townhomes at 7th & Center Street. An urban infill project, Dahlman Rows will have 36 townhomes when completed next year.

Take 5 Car Wash is coming to Nebraska with a location planned for 6678 North 99th Street. That’s southeast of the Interstate 680 and Blair High Road interchange. Take 5 is a membership car wash with 40 locations mostly in Texas and southeastern states.

Construction has reached the 5th floor of a future 6-story apartment building on the northwest corner of 38th & Leavenworth near the University of Nebraska Medical Center. The bottom two floors will be used for indoor parking. The nearly $30 million project will have 172 apartment units.

The Omaha Planning Board has recommended $8.1 million in Tax Increment Financing for the innovation hub project planned as part of the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s Saddle Creek (west) campus. Plans call for the renovation of the long vacant Omaha Steel Castings plant.

Aerial Photos – Grow Omaha’s official photographer, Brad Williams, has posted several aerial photos he took from a helicopter earlier this week of three major development projects: 1. The Mercantile, a mixed-use project on the northwest corner of the ConAgra campus; 2. Renovation of Heartland of America Park on the Riverfront; and 3. Demolition of the Ramada Coco Key Hotel, which old timers may fondly remember as Holiday Inn Central.

You can see multiple shots/angles of all three projects on the Grow Omaha Facebook page by clicking HERE.

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Real Estate News from CoStar – The U.S. restaurant industry has demonstrated a big appetite for initial public offerings this year, one that could feed the real estate market. Panera Brands has joined a half-dozen chains in 2021 that have filed documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission to go public. The activity follows a year when the pandemic landed a blow to the industry that knocked out many of the weaker players, both nationally and locally.

The IPOs are expected to lead to restaurant-chain expansions, with the companies widening their brick-and-mortar footprints. It could prove to be a boost for retail real estate, with restaurant companies either needing new space constructed or wanting to lease some of the retail sites left vacant during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway announced that third-quarter net earnings fell 66 percent to $10.34 billion, or $6,882 per Class-A share equivalent, from $30.14 billion, or $18,994 a share, in the same period a year earlier, according to the Wall Street Journal. Investment gains totaled $3.88 billion in the most-recent period; a year ago, Berkshire reported gains of $24.77 billion. Operating earnings, which exclude some investment results, rose to $6.47 billion from $5.5 billion a year ago.

AMCON Distributing Company, an Omaha-based consumer products company, has announced fully diluted earnings per share of $27.36 on net income available to common shareholders of $15.5 million for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2021. AMCON earned $11.00 per fully diluted share on net income available to common shareholders of $6.3 million for the fourth fiscal quarter ended September 30, 2021.

Thirty Kansas State University students studying integrated risk management visited Scoular’s global headquarters in Omaha this week to hear from company leaders. The students are fellows in the university’s Center for Risk Management Education & Research, one of the nation’s leading multidisciplinary university risk centers, emphasizing hands-on engagement with industry partners. Now in its tenth year, the center equips students with the knowledge to identify, quantify and manage complex market and business risks.

Two local car dealerships are now one. Woodhouse Auto Family has acquired Huber Chevrolet and Cadillac, according to the Omaha World-Herald. The acquisition is expected to close by the end of December, giving the Omaha-based Woodhouse its first Cadillac and Chevrolet franchises in Nebraska.

Funding for female-led startups reached a record $40.4 billion through the first three quarters of 2021, according to The Hustle tech-biz newsletter, exceeding the previous record of $23.7 billion in 2019.

U.S. inflation hit a three-decade high in October—rising at a 6.2 percent annual rate—as pandemic-related supply shortages and continued strength in consumer demand continued to push up prices, according to the Wall Street Journal. The consumer-price index increased at the fastest annual pace since 1990. Inflation also topped 5 percent for the fifth straight month.

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JP Morgan Chase has appointed Emoke Horompoli as vice president commercial banking in the Nebraska market.

Gov. Pete Ricketts has reappointed Brian W. Kruse to a four-year term as Douglas County Election Commissioner. Kruse has served in the role since 2016. By law, the governor appoints election commissioners in Nebraska’s three largest counties: Douglas, Sarpy and Lancaster.

Omaha-based Buildertrend has recruited two former Fortune 500 company executives to its leadership team to expand its portfolio of offerings to the residential construction industry. Andrés Ricaurte, who has a longstanding record of success in the fintech industry, will lead Buildertrend’s financial services offerings. John Sommers Jr. will use his expertise in the home improvement industry to grow and strengthen Buildertrend’s strategic initiatives with material providers.

Ag Processing, Inc. of Omaha has named Mark Sandeen as Group Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), reporting directly to the CEO. In his new role, Mark will lead AGP’s commercial efforts across all AGP marketing groups. Craig Pietig has been promoted to the position of Vice President for Ag Products.

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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