FBI Searches, Omaha's Music Scene, UNL Chancellor Retiring

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HERE’S YOUR RUNDOWN

Happy Don’t Make Your Bed Day

Reed Moore observes this celebration many more times than once a year.

The FBI searches the homes of acting mayor Vinny Palermo and other current and former police officers.
The Reader’s Tim McMahan recaps how Omaha’s music scene changed in 2022.
UNL Chancellor Ronnie Green announces plans to step down after seven years.

2022 Music Year in Review

Indie band Black Midi, who performed at The Slowdown on Oct. 8, was one of the year’s top shows. Photo by Tim McMahan

This past year was the closest we’ve been to “normal” since before 2019. Still, things have changed.

By Tim McMahan. Published in The Reader.

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COVID-19 UPDATE

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By the numbers:

This graphic is updated as of 8:20 a.m. on Dec. 20.

AROUND OMAHA

Two Omaha police officers are placed on leave after FBI searches, including a retired OPD captain and City Councilmember Vinny Palermo. The searches are in connection with PACE, an officer-run nonprofit that runs free sports activities for children. Palermo is serving as acting mayor while Mayor Jean Stothert and Council President Pete Festersen are out of town.

Fireside Village in Ralston has the same owner and property manager as Legacy Crossing, the apartment complex condemned by the City of Omaha. And much like Legacy Crossing, Fireside Village has caused headaches for the City of Ralston. KETV has a timeline of the issues at Legacy Crossing and how the owners wanted “more time” to resolve them.

Bellevue City Administrator Jim Ristow unilaterally approves increased overtime hours for police command staff without approval from the City Council or consultation from the city attorney. The move resulted in the resignation of City Attorney Bree Robbins, who was against the change. The current labor agreement allows command staff to log a maximum of only 80 overtime hours.

Ahead of the snowstorm forecast to hit Omaha, here’s a list of closures and city service scale-backs. Most OPS schools are off for the holidays, while UNO is closed Thursday, Dec. 22. Most other metro-area schools opted to start break early. Metro Transit is cutting back its routes.

AROUND NEBRASKA

UNL Chancellor Ronnie Green is stepping down after seven years in the top job. Green announced his plans in a video with his wife Jane at his side, saying both wanted to retire from public life to spend time with their family. He says he will remain chancellor until June 2023 or until a successor is chosen.

Nebraska State Troopers will receive a 22% pay raise under a renegotiated labor agreement with Gov.-elect Jim Pillen. A union representative calls the increase “historic” and says it will help recruit troopers at a time when the agency is struggling with a shortage. The wages had not kept up with other law enforcement agencies in the state until now.

More details emerge in the investigation into Grand Island school board member-elect Katherine Mauldin. Mauldin provided documents to show residency in Ward C after reportedly saying she lives in Ward A. The man who owns the property she lists as her Ward C address said Mauldin pressured him not to say she didn’t’ live there.

The Kearney Regional Airport is getting a $6.3 million investment from the Federal Aviation Administration, funded by the CARES Act. Kearney City Manager Mike Morgan tells KSNB that the funding will go toward added space and renovation of the airport terminal.

REED MOORE ON LOCAL GOVERNMENT

The Omaha City Council discusses a liquor license for North Omaha Music and Arts, and the Douglas County Board of Commissioners highlights work by county leaders throughout the pandemic.

Click here to read local government reporter Anton Johnson’s full article for The Reader.