Dear friend,
You and I can probably agree that Omaha is a great place to live in many respects, but we also know it could be better. With support from friends like you, we’ve been working for the past several years to make Omaha a place where everyone, no matter who they are or how they get around, can enjoy a good quality of life and exceptional opportunities to live, work, and play.
We do this through education and engagement with our members and the public, monitoring transportation plans and policies, and influencing activities and decision-making related to transportation and land use.
Because of your support, we’ve had some significant successes in the past year and more, such as
- Mobilizing hundreds to come out to support the transportation master plan update (Hey Day on May Day), Bike-Ped Coordinator position (leading to a meeting and three-pronged action item list promised by the Mayor), and saving the Specht and other buildings from turning into yet another parking facility in downtown Omaha.
- Being recognized as a credible and essential partner for transportation-related matters. Mode Shift is regularly asked to be part of transportation-related groups organized by local organizations, the City, and regional agencies. These include the Bus Rapid Transit Stakeholder Committee, Complete Streets task force, and MAPA’s Transportation Technical Advisory Committee.
- Assisting in organizing the biannual Citizens’ Academy for Omaha’s Future, geared to help participants learn how values and decisions shape the built environment of Omaha.
- Playing a key role in making transportation the focus of the last Mayoral and City Council elections. Mode shift identifies problems to address and brings them to the public.
- Helping stop the wasteful project to straighten the midtown S Curve on Dodge Street.
- Helping to get the sidewalks in Benson widened as part of the redeveloped streetscape project along Maple.
- Providing feedback to developers and neighborhood groups on design issues. For example, when the Crossroads project was presented to the City Council, one Councilman said he would withhold his vote until the project was reviewed by Mode Shift.
- Holding interesting and informative discussions with key leaders in the city and region through monthly Coffee Chats and Member Meetings.
- Posting locally-focused blog posts featuring important issues, such as our Bus Rapid Transit series.
Since we’ve done all of this and more with volunteer help from friends and supporters like you, and almost no funding, our ratio of success to dollars spent has been extremely high.
We want to keep this momentum going, but there’s a lot of work left to do.
We’re ramping up what we can do organizationally to create the change we want to see in Omaha. This past year we formalized Mode Shift, becoming a tax-exempt, nonprofit 501c3 organization; we held our first very successful fundraiser in conjunction with Omaha Gives (thank you for your support!); and we’re now planning to hire a part-time Program Coordinator.
We need your help to increase our impact. Please give a gift of $20, $40, $60, or whatever you can afford via PayPal. A gift of $20 will pay for about one hour of the Coordinator’s time. With enough support, we can expand this to a full-time position.
Thank you for all you do to make Omaha a better place to live and for your support of Mode Shift Omaha!
Sincerely,
Craig Moody
Board Chair
Mode Shift Omaha
P.S. Research shows that investing in bicycling, walking and public transit leads to significant financial and other benefits. Investing in Mode Shift Omaha means investing in change that will benefit the entire community and region. Please give now.