Bluffs' newest shopping development: The Marketplace

A March 2008 opening is anticipated for The Marketplace Council Bluffs, a 400,000-square-foot retail shopping center on the southeast corner of the South 24th Street-Interstate 80 interchange.

Joe Kutilek, a partner with John Hughes in Omaha-based Magnum Development Corp., confirmed that plans have been submitted to the Council Bluffs Community Development Department.

"We're just going through the site plan," he said. "Just a commercial development, retail, 50 acres."

Kutilek said the plans are expected to go to the Planning Commission for review on Oct. 10. Leases aren't finalized, but plans call for a 103,000-square-foot anchor tenant. The property already is zoned for commercial use.

Magnum has a concept for how the company would like to develop The Marketplace, but Kutilek said there are still a number of processes to go through with the city; and he can't say how many tenants eventually would locate there.

The Marketplace joins Metro Crossing Shopping Center as a new Council Bluffs retail development. The City Council has approved Metro Crossing's preliminary plans. That project is planned for 85 acres west of Interstate 29 between the South Omaha Bridge Road and the Lake Manawa Power Centre.

It is expected to offer more than 500,000 square feet of retails space with room for as many as 30 different stores, with Kohl's department store as a likely anchor. Mark Anderson of Anderson Construction, CB Richard-Ellis and Kimco Realty Corp., one of the nation's leading retail developers, are involved with Metro Crossing.

Mayor Tom Hanafan said he heard a proposal for The Marketplace a few months ago and wasn't certain that it would happen.

"We're seeing a lot of different developments we didn't see before," he said. "That's nice to see."

Magnum Development buys existing properties and upgrades them and often brings in new tenants, Kutilek said. The company is involved in a 60-acre project with a Super Target at 120th and L Street in Omaha where dirt is expected to begin moving this fall. Magnum is partnering with Cormac, an Omaha-based commercial developer, on that project.

The development of the former Ak-Sar-Ben Racetrack property is another Magnum project, and Kutilek said the firm does much of its work outside the metro area.

Mills County Not Giving Up Bid to Halt Lake Draining

By John Ferak, Omaha World-Herald, Neb

A judge has cleared the way for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources to drain part of a Mills County lake. Lake residents and the Mills County Board, however, are still weighing their options to preserve Pony Creek Lake.

In April, 15 homeowners at the Pony Creek subdivision near Glenwood received letters from the Department of Natural Resources saying their homes, built in the 1970s and 1980s, violated flood control rules. The department told them it planned to begin lowering the lake about 20 feet by April 30. The development includes more than 130 homes.

Several residents protested, saying homes along the lake have withstood numerous heavy rainstorms during the past 35 years without flooding.

The Mills County Attorney's Office received a temporary injunction from a judge to halt the project while the full court decision was pending.

Wednesday, months after hearing both sides' arguments, Mills County District Judge Gordon Abel issued his ruling in favor of the Department of Natural Resources.

Abel wrote that his court did not have proper jurisdiction for the dispute. The judge said the State of Iowa has delegated such matters of water control and floodplains to the Department of Natural Resources.

Assistant Mills County Attorney Eric Hansen said the Mills County Board would meet Tuesday to decide whether to appeal or begin discussions with the department to resolve the dispute.
"The ruling puts us back to square one," Hansen said. "I still don't look for any immediate action from the DNR. I suspect they would wait at least 30 days. They still have to follow all of their administrative rules and procedures."

Kelly Stone, a Department of Natural Resources representative, said Wednesday that his agency has not decided whether to drain Pony Creek Lake.

The manmade lake is about 11/2 miles long and is up to a half-mile wide and 30 feet deep. Cranes, bald eagles, geese and wild turkeys live along the banks and 240 acres of surrounding woodlands.

"Draining a portion of the lake is still the quickest and easiest method to mitigate the flood hazard," Stone said. "But it is not a certain yes. We are willing to look at any proposal. Everything is open to discussion. We hope to have a final resolution by next year's flood season."