Property taxes paid on the value of the structure before the proposed rehab continues to go to the traditional coffers.Ĭity officials said uncertainties often encountered at such physically constrained and “highly built out” sites such as downtown reinforce the need for TIF. Normally property tax revenue goes to schools and local governments. Under the Legislature-approved TIF economic development tool, property tax revenue generated on new or improved development goes toward paying off the developer’s loan, generally for 20 years.

The City Council has yet to approve the subsidy. Keeline Building in downtown Omaha (Courtesy of Baron Commercial Real Estate) That was higher than the $1.4 million requested, but city planner Don Seten said the TIF committee wanted to include an additional amount to help finance the proposed Omaha streetcar. Wednesday, the Omaha Planning Board recommended approval of the $1.53 million in tax-increment financing support. Shamrock Development, which has the Keeline property under contract to buy, is planning renovations that include replacing the roof and the heating and air mechanical systems, and making improvements to first-floor storefronts and the brick exterior.Ĭonstruction is to begin as soon as possible, with completion anticipated in spring 2023. Takechi’s Jewelers was a mainstay but has been listed for a long while as “permanently closed.” Ground-level retailers currently at the Keeline are expected to continue operations, he said, including longtime Bob’s Grill and Cafe, Oasis Falafel and the Backline Comedy Theatre. The 61,000-square-foot Keeline has just lost one of its major tenants, as the Douglas County Juvenile Probation Office left its 15,000 square feet to move to the new and adjacent justice center.īut Moylan predicts also that as downtown revs up with the riverfront tri-park revamp, the Steelhouse music venue and more, small businesses will look to the refurbished Keeline that is just off the future modern streetcar line. “At this particular location, we feel the office market can be sustained,” said Moylan. He pointed to the new Douglas County Juvenile Justice Center, which will house offices, courts, programming and a detention center nearby.

Mike Moylan of Shamrock Development said that while conversion to residential use was tempting and explored, his team decided that the Keeline’s proximity to other redevelopment projects made commercial use more alluring. The plan, poised to receive $1.53 million in public tax-increment financing, stands in contrast with many other recent downtown projects that have repurposed or replaced older buildings with new and trendy housing. “This effectually changed the face of the area surrounding the Douglas County Courthouse,” the application said, “to a commerce and public center ridding downtown Omaha of what was left of the early residential settlement.”įast forward to today, as a $6.8 million rehabilitation project aims to prepare the structure for its next chapter - continued use as a commercial and office center. It was a turning point, according to the nomination that boosted the Keeline to national historic status: Keeline Building, 17th and Harney Streets (Courtesy of Baron Commercial Real Estate)

before the seven-story Keeline was built and opened just east of the then-new Douglas County Courthouse. In fact, the home of a famous Omahan sat on the property at 319 S.

When the historic Keeline Building rose more than a century ago in downtown Omaha, it proved pivotal to the area’s shift from a residential to a commercial and public center.

Backline omaha