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The city is considering tweaking its residential zoning ordinances to allow individuals to garden and sell produce on lots other than those where they live, something that organizations like Community Crops can already do. Local food producers take note: The city is considering tweaking its zoning rules so it’s easier for individuals to grow and sell produce in residential areas. All you home gardeners confused? Welcome to the nuances of Lincoln’s zoning ordinances, which already allow you to grow as many tomatoes and cucumbers and zucchini as your heart desires in your own yard.
But say you’d like to create a garden on a vacant lot in the neighborhood. If you’re Community Crops, or a neighborhood organization that will allow multiple people to garden on the lot, that’s fine. If you’re an entrepreneurial urban farmer or just a fresh produce-loving individual, you can’t.
City officials haven’t come up with any definitive changes and are floating the idea with local groups before deciding whether to submit a formal proposal to the City Council, said City Planner Andrew Thierolf. The idea stems from the city’s Local Food System plan announced by Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird last summer. The plan was an outgrowth of her Climate Action Plan, and the result of a yearlong effort to make the city less dependent on the global food system by promoting urban ag projects and ensuring access to healthy food.
Thierolf said the department took a look at restrictions in local zoning ordinances and the big gap they found was in residentially zoned areas. If you’re thinking about the Hawley Hamlet — a project by residents of the central Lincoln neighborhood focused on creating sustainable urban gardens and how the heck they’re doing that under current zoning ordinances, it’s because there are homes on the same property as the gardens. If this ordinance change happened, they could buy a vacant lot and expand their operation there.
The changes city officials are considering also would ensure that individuals — and those who garden on Community Crops lots in residential areas — could sell items from the urban garden location. And it would clarify that individuals can sell from their homes, though Thierolf said there would be some restrictions on the number of days people could sell their products in a residential area. Gardeners whose gardens are in commercially zoned areas can already do that, Thierolf said.
The 32-foot-tall statue in Antelope Park created by well-known sculptor Ellis Burman in 1936 as part of a New Deal program is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Historic Preservation Office, which is part of the Nebraska State Historical Society (we’re back to the original name now from its former "Nebraska History" moniker), sought the listing of “War and Victory,” located just south of the A Street and Memorial Drive entrance to Antelope Park. The War and Victory sculpture in Antelope Park is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The 52-ton sculpture commemorates veterans from the Revolutionary War, The Civil War, the Spanish-American War and World War I. Burman worked for the Federal Art Project, which was part of the New Deal’s Work Progress Administration. The WPA employed Americans in civil improvement projects of all kinds, including public art.
Here's an illustration of the opioid epidemic: All Lincoln Public Schools — elementary through high school — now carry Narcan, the medication used to reverse opioid overdoses. LPS began making Narcan available in high schools in 2019, then added it to middle schools in 2022 because of a jump in substance assessments in middle schools, according to LPS Communications Director Mindy Burbach. Last year they added the medication to elementary schools because of local concerns about fentanyl in the community.
School health staff have used the medication five times on high school students since they began carrying it in 2019, Burbach said. The medication is available for anyone in a school, including parents and other community members in addition to students. All health service staff are trained to use the medication, which comes in the form of a nasal spray.
LPS got the medication free through a private pharmacy program until recently, and on Monday the City Council approved an interlocal agreement with the Lincoln-Lancaster County Health Department that will provide $3,500 to LPS to help pay for the medication. Need to get from point A to point B and you don’t have a car or much money but you do have two working legs? A program through the Lincoln Transportation and Utilities' bike share program can help. People who need a pass can go to one of seven locations to get either a free one-day pass, or an annual pass for $5.
BikeLNK is offering free one-day passes and $5 annual passes to help low-income people. There are no income guidelines associated with the program, said Hunter Arias, the city manager for BikeLNK, the nonprofit that operates the city's bike share program. Recipients must have a debit or credit card, a phone number and a smartphone.
The bike share program offers an equity program every year, Arias said, and this year’s program — called ChainLNKs: Building Bonds, Sharing Bikes — is funded through a $9,000 grant from the Cooper Foundation, and includes a few more safeguards than in the past to help avoid abuse of the program. The program will continue as long as the 75 day passes and 75 annual passes are available. The day passes are generally for people who need to get across town for a certain purpose, while the annual passes can help people who regularly need transportation around town, Arias said.
Passes are available at the following locations: El Centro De Las Americas, 210 O St.; Christ United Methodist Church, 4530 A St. (where the Malone Center is operating some programs); F Street Community Center, 1225 F St.
; Asian Community and Cultural Center, 144 N. 44th St.; Catholic Social Services, 2241 O St.
; StarTran, 710 J St.; and RISE Academy, 745 S. Ninth St.
The E-edition is available to you every morning, and is updated throughout the day Members of the UNL Army ROTC's Big Red Battalion climb the steps of Memorial Stadium during a silent stair climb in remembrance of those lost in the 9/11 attacks on Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024, in Lincoln. Starting at 6:00 a.
m., various members of the branches of UNL ROTC, first responders in the surrounding Lancaster areas, and former military members began a silent stair climb workout that involves climbing 2,071 steps, or about 110 flights of stairs. This was the number of stairs that were present at the World Trade Center, which first responders climbed in an effort to rescue people from the towers.
The cadets only count the stairs going up, not down. Representing those first responders who never got a chance to descend safely. Lincoln East's Raheem Popoola (13) leads his team out onto the field before the game against Grand Island on Thursday, Sept.
12, 2024, at Seacrest Field. Nebraska's Harper Murray (27) embraces Bergen Reilly (2) after scoring a kill against Creighton in the first set on Tuesday at the Devaney Sports Center. Nebraska's Tommi Hill (6) celebrates a pick-six during the first quarter of the game against Colorado on Saturday, Sept.
7, 2024, at Memorial Stadium. Nebraska's Jacory Barney (17) celebrates as fans rush the field after the game on Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024, at Memorial Stadium.
Terence "Bud" Crawford (center) takes the field next to Nebraska's Dylan Raiola (left) and Mikai Gbayor on Saturday at Memorial Stadium. Nebraska fans storm the field after winning the game against Colorado on Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024, at Memorial Stadium.
Nebraska won 28-10. Police investigate the scene of a shooting Sunday in downtown Lincoln near 11th and P streets where one man was killed and another man was injured. While teammate Dante Dowdell (23) celebrates a touchdown with his teammates, quarterback Dylan Raiola (15) reacts toward the home sideline in the first quarter on Saturday, Sept.
7, 2024, at Memorial Stadium. Nebraska's Dante Dowdell (23) is tackled by Colorado's Shilo Sanders (21) on Saturday at Memorial Stadium. Wahoo players pray in the locker room ahead of their match against Ashland-Greenwood on Friday, Sept.
6, 2024, at Wahoo High School. Lincoln Southeast's Zayvion Campbell (left), Lincoln Southwest's Nathan Mensah (center) and Southeast's Mason Mehta (right) dive after the ball in the end zone during the second quarter on Friday at Seacrest Field. The play resulted in a Lincoln Southwest touchback.
Ian Plumlee, of Lincoln, dances with his daughter, Josephine, 4, as Sandy Creek Pickers performs during the Nebraska Bluegrass Concert Series on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024, on Nebraska Innovation Campus. Jeff Gold speaks after being installed as the University of Nebraska's ninth president during an investiture ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda on Thursday, Sept.
5, 2024. Junior Dylan Zephier (center) dances with senior Jordyn Guse next to senior Helina Cooper (back left) and freshman Liam Hoffschneider during a Unified music class, Thursday, Sept. 5, 2024, at East High School.
Nebraska's Dylan Raiola walks in the Legacy Walk on Saturday outside Memorial Stadium. A great blue heron perches on a rock in the shallow water of Holmes Lake on Tuesday. Nebraska's Leyla Blackwell (11) throws a volleyball into the stands before the match against TCU on Saturday, Aug.
31, 2024, at the Bob Devaney Center. The Huskers run on to the field to kickoff the game against UTEP on Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024, at Memorial Stadium.
Nebraska's MJ Sherman (48) sacks UTEP's Skyler Locklear (9) during the first quarter of the UTEP game on Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024, at Memorial Stadium. Norfolk Catholic players line up on the field before during the game against Bishop Neumann on Friday, Aug.
30, 2024, at Bishop Neumann in Wahoo. Nebraska's Isaiah Neyor (18) catches a 59-yard touchdown pass while defended by UTEP's Jaylon Shelton (9) in the second quarter, on Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024, at Memorial Stadium.
Nebraska's Bergen Reilly (2) watches a husker light show as a highlight reel of last year plays before the match on Friday, Aug. 30, 2024, at the Devaney Sports Center. New University of Nebraska-Lincoln students run out onto the field during the tunnel walk tradition at Memorial Stadium on Friday.
Lincoln Christian's Truman Paulsen holds the Spirit Sword after defeating Lincoln Lutheran on Friday at Aldrich Field. Framed through a children's play set, Jordyn Anderson, 3, pushes her friend Jordan Lara, 4, in a Cozy Coupe toy at the playground outside at Las Abejitas' location at First Lutheran Church on Friday. Las Abejitas, one of only two bilingual child care centers in Lincoln, is opening a second location at First-Plymouth Church in September.
Waverly celebrates after defeating Lincoln Lutheran in five sets Thursday at Lincoln Lutheran High School. Thursday afternoon's football game between Lincoln East and Elkhorn South was postponed due to weather. The teams will make up the game Friday at Seacrest Field.
Lincoln East's Deacon Gehle (from left) and Presley Hall practice passing back anf forth while waiting out a rain delay at Seacrest Field on Thursday, Aug. 29, 2024. From left, U.
S. Sens. Deb Fischer, Pete Ricketts, 3rd District Congressman Adrian Smith, 1st District Congressman Mike Flood and 2nd District Congressman Don Bacon attended the annual summit hosted by the Nebraska, Omaha and Lincoln chambers of commerce on Thursday at Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum in Ashland.
Runners, including Tyler Pooschke (first left) and Mak Krause (right) are led by run lead Trevor White (first right) as they take off along the Billy Wolff Trail for the first-ever run held by the Telegraph Run Club on Wednesday. The new run club is meant to be a welcoming, open and free to any who wishes to join. Nebraska's Nash Hutmacher hands a football back to Henry Erikson of Beatrice, 8, and Brent Erikson during football fan day, Saturday, Aug.
24, 2024, at Hawks Championship Center. Contact the writer at [email protected] or 402-473-7226.
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