From the Omaha World Herald:
They don't need a white picket fence. Why these Omaha families love raising their kids downtown
At first glance, downtown Omaha might not seem like the ideal place to live and raise a family.
It doesn’t fit the typical neighborhood vision of rows of houses, white picket fences and kids playing catch in the front yard. It’s louder and brighter, and there are lots of people and traffic.
But the perks outweigh the inconveniences, says Mike Moylan, a father of twin boys.
Moylan has lived in downtown Omaha since 1994. President of Shamrock Development Inc., Moylan developed The Paxton condos near 14th and Farnam Streets and is developing the Capitol District.
He and his wife, Sigrid, married in 2008 and continued to make downtown their home.
When the couple found out they were expecting twin boys in 2012, they briefly considered moving to a house in another part of Omaha.
“We had some other friends who lived downtown who did move to the suburbs when they had a family,” Moylan said. “But as we thought about it, we enjoyed the lifestyle of downtown.”
So they decided to make it work.
They aren’t the only ones. There are about 300 Omaha Public Schools parents living in the downtown area — bound by Cuming Street, Interstate 480, Leavenworth Street and the Missouri River — according to OPS spokeswoman Monique Farmer.
Amina and Adam Hogan have lived downtown since 2009, and they didn’t consider moving when their first child was born in 2012. At that time, they lived in an Old Market apartment at 12th and Harney Streets.
When their daughter was born in 2015, they started talking about moving to a house in the midtown area.
“While looking, I felt that having a new baby, a toddler, a house with projects and a yard felt overwhelming, as we were used to living pretty maintenance-free,” Amina Hogan said. “So we began exploring staying downtown.”
They ended up moving just a few blocks south of their original downtown apartment.
“We found a place with an attached two-car garage, a private rooftop, a balcony off the kitchen to grill, and we even have our own backyard space,” Hogan said. “We’ve managed to fit a midsize trampoline and a swing set in our backyard, and an inflatable pool on the rooftop.”
There are certainly some annoyances living downtown, including a lack of a decent grocery store, noise — the Hogans live very close to train tracks — and relatively few other children for their kids to make friends with. Hogan also has family who live in west Omaha and dislikes the distance at times because it means a lot of driving to visit them.
But both the Hogan and Moylan families plan carefully so they aren’t making multiple trips to the grocery store each week. Hogan said they use noise machines to help drown out the sound of the trains. They also plan play dates with friends.
Both couples’ children also have school friends. Moylan’s twin boys, 5, and Hogan’s son, 5, attend school together. The families met at a back-to-school function, where they discovered that they all lived downtown.
“I love it. I like getting outside for a walk and seeing something different every day,” Hogan said. “One thing my son always says when we’re heading home is ‘There’s the city!’ I love that.”
Mindy Crook, an owner of Arch Icon Development, said families are important to downtown’s core, and their presence increases people’s view of downtown as a positive place to live and work.
People feel safe when they see a mom pushing a stroller or a family with kids,” she said. “It makes everyone feel safer. Families are a key piece to downtown.”
One of the company’s downtown developments, The Lofts on 24th, offers three- and four-bedroom apartments to accommodate families. The company also plans to apply for an affordable housing project at 24th and Howard Streets, which Crook says will include 18 three-bedroom units and 12 four-bedroom units.
“We feel that Omaha has a great downtown core … as far as events, places like the Omaha Children’s Museum, the Orpheum Theater and schools,” she said. “That’s why that location between midtown and downtown seems good.”
Moylan, who is developing projects downtown, said that with Omaha’s commitment and investment into its urban core, living downtown is now a very viable option.
“Especially with the new planned riverfront park improvements along with new investment in private and public schools in the area. More will come over time,” he said.
His family doesn’t plan to move away from downtown any time soon.
Moylan said living downtown gives him and his wife more quality time with their kids.
“What little time you have as a working parent, you get more of that with your child because you don’t have to spend time on house maintenance that sometimes comes with owning a home,” he said.
And if they get bored at home, Moylan said the greatest things Omaha has to offer are within a few blocks of their front door.
“Our playground is the Children’s Museum. Our backyard is Heartland of America Park, Gene Leahy and the riverfront. We have a public library within eyesight,” he said. “That really adds to the experience that your average neighborhood doesn’t accrue.”
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