ELKHORN, Neb. (KMTV) — A new residential development near 209th and Blondo was approved by the Planning Board on Wednesday. What used to be farmland will soon become a 173 acre neighborhood with almost 380 homes.
- Elkhorn natives share their thoughts and concerns with the land after seeing their hometown grow and change over the years.
- They recognize the need to expand but have concerns with how the development will affect traffic and water run-off.
- Land Developers plan on closing on the land at the end of this month and plan on moving dirt starting this summer.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
In Elkhorn off 209th and Blondo is 173 acres of land now planned to become a new subdivision with 380 homes. As Elkhorn continues to expand and grow, it's important to remember what used to be to know what is now and understand how neighbors feel about it.
Patsy Schmidt has a lot of memories here.
"Originally, my grandparents lived up there, and my father was born up there in 1924,” said Schmidt.
She's an Elkhorn native and the president of the Elkhorn Historical Society.
"All the ground around here is practically housing now very few areas that aren't."
And this farmland will soon become another neighborhood.
Some neighbors I talked with say they aren't opposed to growth but are worried about a few things one of them being traffic.
"You know how busy those roads are, there's been a couple deaths on the roads over the last probably 20 years,” said Cheryl Dillon, an Elkhorn resident.
"This corner has been dead man's corner. There's been a lot of accidents on this corner. These are really sharp, right angles and I'm hoping that they can fix that,” said Michelle Klassen, who lives close to the new development.
Developers do plan on paving Blondo but told me traffic studies have been done to determine the safety of the roads and that it's up to the city to address these concerns.
Another concern neighbors have is where water run-off will go.
"We get water in the basement, it's freshwater springs. It's a low area so I'm hoping that they think of that when they're putting in all the sewers and the run-off,” said Klassen.
So, while neighbors know this open land will likely never be the same again: It's because of the effect that it had on my life I hate to see it go,” said Schmidt.
They accept that this land is now fertile ground for a new community.
“You know it is exciting you know you can't stop progress, but my concern is we need to do it smart,” said Klassen.
Land Developers tell me they plan on closing on the land at the end of this month. They'll then go to the city for preliminary plat approval and plan on moving dirt starting this summer.
