Mutual of Omaha
Another update: City announce a streetcar web site (https://nebraskaexaminer.com/briefs/omaha-streetcar-authority-launches-informational-website/)
Update, more government agencies come into conflict over the proposed streetcar, including state legislatures. Mutual of Omaha stays clear of discussion. (https://nebraskaexaminer.com/2023/01/23/omaha-streetcar-debate-rolls-into-the-nebraska-legislature)
Update, housekeeping issue. This essay has hyperlinks. Let me know what you think. I tend to despise such links as someone always has a browser directing them elsewhere and the link would trace your movements backs to this page. So let me know what you think.
With the topic of economics, people put a lot of faith in businesses. But businesses most often have a very narrow view of economics. Great economic ideas such as Governor Pillen’s flat income tax proposal, which would reduce the incentives for special interests to beg for favor from Government, are rare.
In the testimonies on minimum wage, viewpoints from businesses were all over the map. Yet, the argument is very simple. If the price of eggs goes up, do you buy more or fewer eggs? Well, what is the average business going to do if the cost of labor is artificially raised by government? Will they hire more employees or fewer? So many businesses missed the mark on understanding this which is why I put very little trust in their viewpoints on economics.
When Mutual of Omaha built the Midtown Crossing (https://midtowncrossing.com/), people admired what had been done. So people listen when the company offers to build a skyscraper in exchange for a streetcar being built. Yet, you won’t hear or read much about the Mutual of Omaha’s many foibles in the local media.
Decades ago, a man made a funny shirt out of the Mutual of Omaha’s former symbol involving a Native American. The shirt said: Mutant of Omaha, Nuclear Holocaust Insurance. Well, Mutual of Omaha went ballistic on the shirt and the maker was forced to stop producing the shirt. The Company had no sense of humor but later was Woke enough to switch their Native American icon to a lion’s head.
There was also the historic and iconic Clarinda and Page buildings (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarinda_%26_Page_Apartments) where again, Mutual of Omaha played a role in having the buildings torn down. I realize the buildings were in bad condition but part of this was the result of Nebraska’s absurd property tax laws which make it difficult to maintain a building. However, Mutual of Omaha had the means to restore the buildings but refused, ignoring public sentiments for the iconic buildings. Today, the lot is nothing but a lawn.
So to the streetcar, my dedicated readers already know my take so I am not going to rehash those arguments. My problem is with Mutual of Omaha being a horrible advocate for the streetcar. While the Omaha Planning department loves the idea of streetcar, I am certain they do not like many details of the plan. At the same time, Mayor Stothert insists the costs will not be born by taxpayers but it will. Several City Council members have sided with Stothert when they should be concerned about reducing the size of City government. Mutual of Omaha just sits in the back and says very little. They expect the politicians to make the case but have spent no money on public relations to promote the project among a very skeptical public. Again, Mutual of Omaha is being tone-death on the whole project and is doing a political power play with expectations of winning. Their motto should be "have political clout, will develop properties".
Meanwhile, Nebraskan Taxpayers for Freedom (https://www.netaxpayers.org) has consistently opposed the streetcar and issued their own paper (https://www.netaxpayers.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/ccwatch71.pdf) Doug Kagan, who runs the organization, has been very consistent in informing the public. and is well known to conservatives and Republicans, yet the politicians prefer to carry the water for Mutual of Omaha.
The real damning question is, what is Mutual of Omaha? A bank, an insurance company, or a developer? According to this story, the Company sounds so much like a developer (https://www.ketv.com/article/whats-next-for-midtown-mutual-of-omaha-talks-future-of-area-as-company-plans-to-move-hq-downtown/38904556). With this in mind, the public really needs to know what Mutual of Omaha is and what it is up to.