The certificate-granting academy’s name references the Omaha Tribe, known as “the ones who go against the current,” many of whose members live on the reservation where the school is located.

The AEC community is going strong in Omaha, Tondl says. “The pandemic and subsequent inflationary period have not slowed growth.

Among the first projects of its kind to be built on Native American reservation lands, the $18-million Against the Current Career Academy enables students at Umonhon Nation Public Schools to learn hands-on jobs while attending high school.

The $50-million Carson Group headquarters features a six-story office structure joined to a four-story tower by an amenity hub. Both buildings use electrochromic envelopes to reduce energy loads and emissions.

The first project built under an integrated project delivery method in Nebraska and one of the largest IPD projects in the U.S., the owner, architect and the construction manager worked collaboratively on the Hubbard Center through design and preconstruction to provide real-time estimating that saved $50 million and reduced the schedule by 40 days.

Still hampered by pandemic-related uncertainly, Midwest construction starts fell in 2021 even as signs of a return to normalcy bolstered markets near the end of the year.

Dodge data on projected 2022 construction starts in Omaha and Council Bluffs, Iowa.

Biogas once used to power the recovery facility’s combined heat and power system is now generating revenue for the city, thanks to an $8.6-million heat and electrical generation system upgrade.

The 35,000-sq-ft, 850-seat church utilizes insulated concrete forms (ICF) for the basement and first-level exterior walls, giving the structure increased energy efficiency and added resilience against extreme temperatures and weather events.

Dam owners, state and local authorities must do a better job of understanding the history of the dams in their inventory as well as preparing for ice runs that could destroy dams like Nebraska's Spencer Dam, which collapsed under the weight of heavy rain combined with cold temperatures and frozen ground last spring.