Nebraska Crossing owner Rod Yates has made another intriguing statement about the mega project he intends to develop off Interstate 80 in and around Gretna.
Yates said he wants to increase the size of the Good Life District near I-80 and Nebraska 31 to accommodate “a global brand†that needs 800 acres.
“I’m full now and need to expand the district to 4,000 acres,†he said.
Neither he, nor the state, nor the city provided more information about the recent proposal when asked by the Omaha World-Herald.
Yates applied for and won state approval last February to create a 2,000-acre district under a 2023 law.
The Gretna district, located around and including his Nebraska Crossing shopping mall, is already the largest acreage district approved under the state’s Good Life Transformational Projects Act.
It is also the largest when it comes to potential economic impact.
The initial application, which won state approval late last year, estimated new development costs at $3.2 billion and the creation of nearly 30,000 jobs over the life of the district.
A spokesperson for the Nebraska Department of Revenue declined to comment on a possible expansion plan, saying the matter was confidential.
It’s been the department’s practice to release few details on a proposed district, only making public the boundaries once a district is approved.
Lawmakers passed the act to attract unique and tourist-oriented businesses, create jobs and make the state more attractive to college graduates.
Gretna Mayor Mike Evans said Friday the proposed expansion was news to him.
“It’s hard to respond too much to it,†he said.
He said the city is willing to work with developers and ensure development is done responsibly.
“It’s so big,†he said, “until you see how it works, you can’t even know if it’s going to be bad.â€
Listen now and subscribe: | | | | | |
The city also denied a request for information it has received from Yates about the district.
“It is a conceptual, preliminary, draft proposal and is incomplete in form. It is embryonic and a work in progress that is subject to required contract negotiations,†said the denial letter from Paula Dennison, Greta’s city administrator.
Grand vision but no certainty
Yates has shared publicly a grand vision for the district, yet there’s been no public announcements that he’s cemented the deals.
In February, he told state lawmakers he was “in the final stages†of putting together an agreement to relocate USA Volleyball facilities from Anaheim, California.
Also in February, Yates joined a delegation of Nebraska officials, including Gov. Jim Pillen, on a visit to the NHL league office in New York to pitch the state as ripe for an expansion team.
Yates has talked of building a sports arena and landing resort hotels, restaurants, new-to-Nebraska retail stores, high-tech firms, a golf course and youth sports fields to attract tournaments.
Already, the Good Life Transformational Act allows stores within the district to charge a 2.75% state sales tax rate, rather than the 5.5% outside the district.
It’s not clear how many stores have adopted the lower rate.
With the state sales tax cut in half, cities can make up the difference with local sales, use and occupation taxes within the district. Revenue from those taxes can then be used to cover a broad array of development costs from infrastructure like roads to constructing or financing public or private buildings.
Before a city can steer that revenue to the development, voters must approve. In July, the Gretna City Council considered setting a special election for Jan. 14 but tabled the resolution.
Evans said the council has until November to set an election for January.
Voters in Grand Island this month voted in favor of allowing their city to make use of the law for a Good Life District project.
In Grand Island, Woodsonia Real Estate got state approval for a district with an estimated $550 million investment and creation of 5,000 new jobs.