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OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — This neighborhood in East Omaha, located halfway between Carter Lake and Eppley Airfield, is a piece of heaven for those who live there. But these neighbors fear their homes will disappear as the airport business park construction push continues.
- Residents of this East Omaha neighborhood are reflecting on their family’s history in the neighborhood and wondering what will happen to their homes.
- “We don’t know which road is safer for us,” said Joe Fox Jr., who lives in this East Omaha neighborhood.
- Watch the video and hear from neighbors and the groups behind the development.
Broadcast transcript:
The neighborhood is filled with family history, dirt roads, and septic tanks that give it a rural feel despite being in the city.
“We’ve been there since about 1940, my immediate family, the Fox family,” said Joe Fox Jr., a resident of the East Omaha area. “When you’re there long enough, you get to know all the families nearby.”
“This is my home,” said resident Rachel Hefker, who grew up in the neighborhood.
“My opinion is that I want to stay, but whether that’s possible is a different story,” neighbor Joe Higgins said.
Neighbors Joe Fox Jr., Rachel Hofker and Joe Higgins have been searching for answers ever since they learned their home was in the middle of a business development project.
In January, state and city leaders announced millions of dollars in grants for development.
“How did you feel when you first heard about this?” asked reporter Molly Hudson. “It’s heartbreaking,” Hefker said.
Searching for answers to the question of what will become of the region only creates more questions.
I put these questions to state senators Justin Wayne, Terrell McKinney, and Michael Maloney, president of the Omaha Economic Development Corporation. He was the only person who agreed to an interview in time for publication of this article.
“From what I understand, they were proposing to take the money that was awarded for the airport business park and put it in this Inland Port Authority,” Maloney said. .
As the debate rages over who gets the money and how it’s spent, neighbors like Fox Jr. are left wondering if there’s a way to protect their homes.
“I don’t know which path is safer for us,” Fox Jr. said.
Now all we have is what we can tell each other while our neighbors continue to wait.
Maloney said OEDC plans to tell neighbors about its plans, but not until it knows if there is funding.
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