Demo outcome finalized for University of Nebraska building

The board of regents of the University of Nebraska has unanimously approved a demolition project on its Medical Center campus in Omaha, which it says will open up the land to redevelopment.

According to the Omaha-World Herald, the building targeted for demolition used to house the Munroe-Meyer Institute, which concentrates on research into intellectual, developmental and behavioral disabilities. The institute moved to a new location in 2021.

The involvement of the institute helped attract donations to fund the anticipated $7 million cost of demolishing the Munroe-Meyer Institute’s prior home, says the newspaper.

The project will leave a 7.5-acre site that may next host a teaching hospital and hazard response preparation facility fittingly known as Project NExT, if plans for it are finalized.

Demolition could begin later this year, although first the relocation of some tenants will need to be completed, says the Herald.

The complex to be demolished consists of four attached structures built in the late 1950s, adds the newspaper. Its age has engendered high utility costs, and asbestos may be present—factors that helped the board of regents lean toward demolition rather than renovation.