OMAHA- Conflict is brewing over how public funding should be used to improve the South Omaha historic business district, centering specifically on how best to transform the Plaza de la Raza, which acts as an anchor spot along the commercial spine where occasional pop-up events and annual Latino heritage celebrations are held.

A spotlight has been shined on the plaza over the last year after a community-based organization, Canopy South, pursued and was given a $25 million state grant to help transform it into a permanent "corridor centerpiece and tourism draw." Canopy South, as well as the Latino Economic Development Council, proposed a plan to jazz up the plaza with features like an amphitheater, stage, playground, and cultural center.

However, a group of 24th Street merchants and workers, led by the Nebraska Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, are criticizing the plan, and argued in a letter to public officials that the funding should instead be used to invest in building a parking structure. "It will enhance the ability of clients to shop and get services in the area," the group said in the letter, "therefore improving the financial standing of the South Omaha stakeholders."

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