Mixed Signals 🚦

Consider yourself warned, Ledgers 🚥

As of today, it’s officially illegal to turn on a red arrow in Nebraska. While many of us assumed this was already a rule, it turns out that it was actually more of a suggestion. 🤷

Red arrows now join the ranks of other misunderstood traffic rules, like entering roundabouts and zipper merging.

In this week’s issue:

• Convention Center: If you build it, business travelers will come.

• What To Do: Small town grub, Capitol tours, and Cooper and Co.

• Sportz: Drop down and give us 50.

• Neighborhood Watch: Gere Mansion.

A Confession:
My toxic driving trait is getting frustrated when drivers in front of me stop or slow down prematurely in a merge lane, instead of driving further and accelerating safely until they can merge smoothly.

- Landon

CONVENTION CENTER

Downtown Convention Center Project progresses.

Like our hopes of a winning football season, Lincoln’s dreams of bringing a new tourism staple downtown are getting closer and closer. Last week, Assemble Lincoln, the committee responsible for overseeing the development of the Downtown Convention Center Project, released their short list of sites under consideration, which included:

• Garfield site (between 13th and 14th street, and L and N street)

• The southern side of the former Gold’s building

• The Haymarket post office

The project has steadily gained traction since a 2023 study on the impacts of a convention center in downtown Lincoln was released. Most notably, the committee announced in April the addition of Populous, a Kansas City-based architecture firm that helped create (the) Sphere in Las Vegas.

🔢 By the numbers…

• $18.5M: Est. annual economic output from events held at the convention center.

• $62M: Est. economic output as a result of the construction of the convention center over a two-year period.

• $1.3M: Annual tax revenue generated as a result of the project.

• 25,800: Annual hotel room nights as a result of the convention center.

📌 Why it matters:
“Diversification is protection against ignorance” - Warren Buffett

Strong, balanced portfolios (and economies) are diversified. While a convention center falls under the broader category of tourism, it specifically caters to business tourism, which is distinctly different from that of college athletics. All in all, this could be a big win for Lincoln.

Sources:
Visit Lincoln - New Study Shows Downtown Convention Center Would be a Catalyst for “Significant” Economic Growth

10/11 Now - Assemble Lincoln narrows convention center site to three locations, Downtown Lincoln convention center gets a small step closer to reality

WHAT TO DO

Small town grub, Capitol tours, and Cooper and Co.

With a slow weekend in terms of events ahead of us and mostly cloudy weather, you’ll need to think creatively about how to spend your time. Here are a few ideas to get you going….

🛣️ Small Town Grub
Text a few friends (right now) and head to small-town Nebraska for dinner. It’s not about the destination; it’s about the journey. But here are a few destinations worth considering for your evening outing. And yes, all dishes are served with an iced cold Busch Lite (just the way you like it):

• Hallam Steakhouse | Hallam, NE

• Denton Daily Double | Denton, NE

• Hickman Bar and Grill | Hickman, NE

🗼 Capitol tour
Saturday, you’ll take a free guided tour of the Nebraska Capitol building and unlock some core memories. It’s been a minute since your last visit, so take the chance to re-experience the capitol building that often blends into the background of everyday life in Lincoln. Tours start at 10:00 am and run hourly, with the last tour beginning at 4:00 pm.

🛋️ Cooper and Co.
Sunday, we’re on the hunt for home goods and furniture. Our favorite stop? Without a doubt, it is Cooper and Co. (not sponsored, but this editor does love a well-made credenza if you’re offering 😗). Browse the furniture, sit on all of the chairs, and dream a little about how you’d incorporate the pieces into your place. This is a TLL favorite and a regular slow Sunday hobby, and it is open from 12:00-4:00 p.m.

🧛 Bonus: Vampire Weekend at Pinewood Bowl
On Tuesday evening, Vampire Weekend plays at Pinewood Bowl. There are still a few tickets if you feel like jamming to indie rock.

SPORTZ

Sporting headlines from around the capital.

• 📣 Fans: UNL will host Fan Day on August 24th.

• 🐎 Horse: John Cook’s horse will be named “Revival.”

• 🏈 Football: The Nebraska defensive line has a new nickname, “Death Row” (NU PR Team, u ok?).

• 🏅 Olympics: The Olympics begin next week. Get hyped.

NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH

2811 S 24th, Lincoln, NE 68502

Gere Mansion. 🏠

There are homes we find cool, and there are those we can actually see ourselves living in. The Gere Mansion is definitely the latter. Located on the corner of Van Dorn and 24th Street, it exudes character in a distinguished, old-fashioned manner without feeling pretentious or stuffy. For a home originally built in 1892, that is one hell of an accomplishment.

A (very) condensed Historical Timeline:

• 1892: The home was built by Charles Henry Gere, a New York transplant who would live many lives as a State Senator, railway advocate, lawyer, and later newspaper editor.

• 1892: The house was moved to its current location just before the 20th century,

• Later: The home was inherited by Ellen B. Gere, women’s rights activist and bestie of none other than the famed author and UNL building name-sake, Willa Cather.

• Even Later: More history happened…. (like wars and stuff, read a book🙄)

• Today: And that’s how we got to today. Capeesh?

The Details:

• 5 beds, 4 baths

• 4,400 sq/ft

• Built in 1892

• Probably some ghosts

❤️ KEEP The kitchen, the breakfast nook, and its charming wallpaper, the antique radiators that add charm (and some warmth), and the study where we can only imagine that the previous owner wrote their novel.

🗑️ TOSS: There’s not much we’d toss. But we’d look at the laundry room for a bit of renovation, the bonus rooms on the top floor, the primary bedroom light, and the bathroom cabinet hardware and fixtures that we don’t think live up to their potential.

CHECKLIST

An over-ambitious weekend to-do list.

• Lift up your furniture and vacuum.

• Buy some normal groceries. We love girl dinner, but it’s time for a normal meal.

• Clean off the top of your fridge.

• Restart your workout habit.

• Fill any external gaps on your home with some spray foam.

HEADLINES

More news from around the capital.

• Rabies: A fox in Lincoln tested positive for rabies.

• BBQ: Phat Jack’s BBQ is closing after 15 years.

• Twisters: A UNL Professor contributed to the research on the new movie “Twisters.”

🐯 Weekly Wildcard:
One headline (or post) we never saw coming.

• Caniac: A man was caught going 118 mph in Northeast Nebraska on his way to Raising Canes.