The city of Omaha will cover the cost of demolishing or repairing a building along the streetcar route that partially collapsed in June.
The former Brother’s Lounge cocktail bar at 3810 Farnam St. experienced a foundational collapse amid heavy rainfall and streetcar construction. Steve Jensen, a longtime city planner and interim director of the streetcar authority, said the City of Omaha is still investigating whether that construction contributed to the collapse.
It’s now up to the owners of the vacant structure in Blackstone whether to demolish or repair the structure.
“The sooner they make that decision, the sooner we can get this wrapped up,” Jensen said. “Eventually it will impact the (streetcar) schedule, but it isn’t for now.”
Nebraska Public Media was unable to reach the building’s owners Tuesday afternoon. In a July 30 Facebook post, Brothers Lounge wrote “every time it rains, we are terrified.” The post went on to say that there is a lack of drainage in the area and the city has done nothing to protect the building.