June 21, 2006 – An Omaha charitable foundation is seeking to bridge the final funding gap for a signature pedestrian bridge on Omaha's riverfront.
The Peter Kiewit Foundation has pledged $1 million toward making the $22 million, 3,000-foot span over the Missouri River a reality.

With the Kiewit pledge, city officials said Tuesday, Omaha and Council Bluffs have secured nearly all the $5 million in private money needed to complete financing for the project. The bulk of the funding comes from a federal grant secured by former U.S. Sen. Bob Kerrey.

"The Kiewit pledge is extremely important and goes a long way toward helping us meet our goal," said Paul Landow, Mayor Fahey's chief of staff. "We're very close. This is good news."
The Kiewit gift comes in the form of a challenge grant and is contingent on the rest of the $5 million being raised by July 18. That's the day Fahey is scheduled to bring the bridge before the Omaha City Council for final approval.

The foundation's board approved the $1 million pledge last week.

"Our trustees believe this bridge will add a new icon to the Omaha skyline," said Lyn Wallin Ziegenbein, executive director of the Kiewit Foundation. "But most importantly, we think it further links Omaha and Council Bluffs both civically and economically."

Last month, Fahey selected a 200-foot-tall, twin spire design for the long-delayed bridge, which has been almost 10 years in the making.

The bridge will connect 150 miles of bike and pedestrian paths on both sides of the Missouri, and officials hope it will become a signature landmark.

Fahey has previously said he has commitments for $3.5 million in private funding. With the Kiewit grant and other pledges that are still being finalized, all the funding may be secured by next week, Landow said.
The private funding is the last hurdle to bringing the project to the council, Landow said. Once approved, contractors can begin work almost immediately, with completion set for fall of 2008.

The bridge has long been a target for critics who view it as pork-barrel spending and frivolous. Ziegenbein said she thinks the appearance and usefulness of the bridge will silence many critics.

"It's a visual attraction both from the ground and the air," she said. "And its utility for recreation and enjoyment of the river will be unlike anything we've ever had before."

The Kiewit Foundation, formed after the death of Omaha businessman Peter Kiewit, since 1980 has donated more than $450 million for projects in Nebraska and western Iowa, including $81 million toward revitalization of downtown Omaha and the riverfront.
 

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