Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert and UNMC Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, MD, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to provide financial support for Project NExT, described as “transformational” for the City of Omaha.
The MOU identifies $93 million in city funds to support Project NExT and the UNMC expansion west of Saddle Creek Road over the next decade.
Project NExT is the proposed multibillion dollar federal disaster response center and state-of-the-art medical research and training facility planned for the UNMC and Nebraska Medicine campus. Project NExT will be funded through a public-private partnership between local, state and federal governments and private and philanthropic support.
See Tuesday’s news conference.
Estimates show Project NExT will create more than 8,700 permanent jobs and 41,000 construction jobs. Once approved and funded by the federal government, it is anticipated construction of the facility will be completed in six to eight years.
The economic impact to the city is projected to be approximately $1.9 billion annually during construction and $1.3 billion annually after the opening.
“This investment and partnership will provide enormous opportunities for Omaha and advance UNMC and Nebraska Medicine’s role as a global leader in research, training, treatment and prevention of disease,” said Mayor Stothert. “The medical center is already uniquely qualified to respond to public health crises and other types of national threats — we have seen that firsthand with the treatment of Ebola patients and now COVID-19. Project NExT places Omaha in a competitive position to attract and retain the best and brightest talent.”
“We are thankful to Mayor Stothert and the City of Omaha for its commitment to Project NExT and the development of the surrounding area,” Dr. Gold said. “Project NExT will provide a world-class home for an academic medical center, health security for our nation, as well as provide an economic injection that drives development and prosperity in Omaha for decades. We continue to work hard to secure the necessary funding from the federal government.”
The MOU pledges up to $45 million for Project NExT and $48 million for public improvements, streets and a public parking garage on the adjoining Saddle Creek campus expansion, which will include a new administrative office building and a mixed use development that may include housing, restaurants, hotels and other amenities.
The proposed financing plan designates $4.5 million annually to Project NExT from the occupation taxes collected on tobacco and vaping products over 10 years, beginning in 2023.
The Omaha City Council passed the tobacco tax ordinance in 2012 to help finance the Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center on the UNMC campus. In 2019, the City Council removed the sunset provision that would have ended the tax in 2022 and added vaping products to the ordinance. Currently, the City collects between $4.2 and $4.5 million annually in tobacco tax.
The city will finance the parking garage with lease-purchase bonds. Other infrastructure improvements, including streets, will be included in the 2021-2026 Capital Improvement Plan and funded with transportation bonds.
The MOU is non-binding agreement. The funding sources will not increase taxes.
The State of Nebraska has already approved $300 million for the NExT Project. Last year, Gov. Pete Ricketts signed a bill committing funding contingent on additional financial support for the project.
It is anticipated that within the next month, several sites will be designated as the new federal all-hazard response locations in preparation for future pandemics and natural disasters, among other threats to public safety and security.
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