A Growth Mindset
The Lincoln community continues to grow in population which has significant impacts on our community. Our city has grown in several directions over the last two or three decades. Take a moment to think back to the 1990s and how our city now has grown in development to the north all the way to Interstate 80 for a large section of the city. To the east, development has grown well past 84th Street. To the west our city has developed out near Pioneers Park and further. The southern portion of our city in the 1990s barely reached Old Cheney Road and now is approaching Saltillo Road. Now the South Beltway is progressing quite nicely, which will help develop more growth for Lincoln.
During our recent meetings with LIBA committees and our Board of Directors, we have been focusing our conversations and positions on encouraging more growth in Lincoln and Lancaster County. It has been said that if a city isn’t growing, then it is dying. The City Council’s recent vote on the comprehensive plan is one example of LIBA encouraging a pro-growth mindset. With the completion of the South Beltway coming, the comprehensive plan did not seem to include growth opportunities toward and around the beltway. Thinking back a few decades, the 204th Street corridor in Sarpy and Douglas Counties was a simple two-lane “backroad” between Gretna and Elkhorn. As the corridor was expanded into a four-lane project, the development and growth followed with commercial, residential, and industrial projects. This is the growth mindset we hope our city will use as they consider the future of the comprehensive plan. We testified and provided a vision of growth along the beltway hoping they will consider amendments in the future to allow our city to grow.
Proceeding further with a growth mindset, the LIBA Board of Directors recently adopted a set of legislative priorities as we prepare for the upcoming session. The full set of priorities has been sent to each state senator asking them to keep a growth mindset when developing policies for the upcoming session which begins in January.
Below are some examples of the priorities we have set forth for legislative bodies to consider, with a focus on growth.
1. Build the East Beltway – For many years, Lincoln had conversations but no action, and until recently, the South Beltway only seemed like a dream. To help our city as we continue to grow, we are encouraging policies to begin work on the East Beltway immediately following the completion of the South Beltway.
2. Invest in infrastructure – A central obligation of government is to provide infrastructure. We support installation and maintenance of critical infrastructure in Lincoln, Lancaster County, and across the state. Replacing dilapidated roads and bridges helps provide a safe way for consumers and business to interact and increase the efficiency in supply chain routes for industrial and agricultural products.
3. Reduce regulations on business – Innovation in business growth in business drives economies. Now more than ever it is time for government to get out of the way of allowing businesses to grow and prosper by reducing the regulations on business. During the pandemic, several regulations were lifted to allow creative solutions for businesses. We must continue to look at ways to help business thrive.
4. Eliminating the personal property tax on business – Nebraska businesses continue paying hundreds of millions of dollars in personal property taxes. Many of Nebraska’s bordering states do not impose any tax on personal property and Nebraska needs to take a long look at policies to ensure our state is competitive in having a growth mindset to attract and retain business.