OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Newly obtained data from the Douglas County 911 Center shows there have been 134 calls for service here, including trespassing, burglary, graffiti, and theft. Neighbors tell me even they were surprised to learn of the number of 911 calls here.
"I'm just really shocked by that number, and nothing still has been done," said Cameron Ram.
When Ram moved into his apartment years ago, he didn't think the abandoned building would still be an issue today.
"The building is not serving any purpose. It's just been sitting there for years, and nothing has been done," he said.
On Monday, neighborhood reporter John Brown paid another visit to the hotel. He discovered people were back cleaning the inside of it. They're the same workers who were here Thursday. He talked with one man off camera named Jake Williams. He said he's the nephew of property manager Larry Williams. Jake told KMTV Larry paid him $1,500 in advance to come from Texas to start cleaning the property so they could demolish it themselves. Jake said they're working on getting the front of the hotel cleared by the end of the week.
This comes as the city goes back and forth with the property owners about demolishing the building. A recent letter warned that this hotel will be slated for demolition because owners failed to make repairs. But now a city employee tells me several variables may complicate the process.
KMTV is told the owners may demolish it themselves rather than allow the city to tear it down and send them the bill. For neighbors like Ram, it leaves him wondering how much longer he'll have to wait for change.
"It could definitely be turned into something more valuable for the community rather than just sitting there abandoned," he said.
As for what comes next, there is a city inspection slated for Dec. 14 to determine the status of the building.
We'll continue to follow this story.
