Really? Hmm. I hadn't given it much thought. So the next day, I drove back to the Slowdown with my camera to see what she was talking about. I should have worn sunscreen, because when I started walking around the area, I found a lot more to explore than I'd expected.
"Old Things New" is a theme I keep coming back to, and I found that phrase coming to mind again. North Downtown used to be a booming business district, but things dried up after the Hilton Hotel was built on top of 16th street in 1966, cutting off the major traffic artery that connected north downtown with the rest of the central business district. (The DoubleTree Hotel is in that location now.) The move was probably motivated by racial and religious tension; the majority of the businesses impacted were owned by members of the African American and Jewish communities.
The area picked up the unfortunate nickname of "NoDo," a moniker that was sadly accurate. But after several decades, things are starting to change. North Downtown is becoming a cool hub for shopping, dining, and entertainment again.
As I wandered around in full tourist mode, shamelessly taking photo after photo of things most "natives" walk by without a second glance, I ran into one of the friendly employees of Greenstreet Cycles. I thought I should explain myself after he walked by me twice, probably wondering why this weirdo was taking pictures of the building, so I gave him a Hometown Tourist card and explained the blog. Like me, he's an Omaha native who had to move away for awhile to really appreciate what's here. We had a nice chat about Greenstreet and the North Downtown area in general.
I think this would be a fun date night. Dinner on the patio at Goodnight's Pizza Bar...
...followed by a movie at Film Streams...
...or a concert at the Slowdown or the Qwest Center. They're all in easy walking distance of each other.
The T.D. Ameritrade Stadium is going up next to the Qwest Center, so we'll have another entertainment option soon.
Notice the mix of old and new - shiny buildings in the background, and the railroad crossing sign in the foreground. Trains have been an important part of Omaha history since the 1860's, bringing goods and growth to the city since it was chosen as the eastern starting point for the first transcontinental railroad. A series of murals on a building facing the Qwest center explores Nebraska's past and present, focusing on our roots...
The old and the new, co-existing peacefully side by side. I like it. It has character.
The more time I spend being a tourist in my own hometown, the more I find to appreciate about it. The irony is that sometimes it takes a visitor from out of state to make me see what's right in front of me.
Oh - and I found a really cute sundress on sale at Urban Outfitters for $10. Thanks for the tip, Ingrid!
As someone who has spent limited time exploring omaha, this is an interesting area to me - in many ways, I liken it's original history to be tied to the idea I see as having founded NE and in part the cities of Omaha and Lincoln. It was once pointed out to me where in MN and the like that the pioneers set out and said "This is a tough land, man has to work together to survive." - in NE the sentiment was largely "This is a tough land, a man has to stand on his own two feet if he is going to survive. The new urbanism of NoDo seems to invoke a new idea, but is it inclusive or exclusive? Small bike shops speak their own language and the Sokolof seem to value this new urbanism as defined by the naming of Fahey Street (if only in name). The golden ribbon seems to signify a common thread that everyone plays a part from history to present plays a part. It's neat to see a city grow internally, taking up a part that was ignored for too long, but what does it take the place of?
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