Some Nebraska lawmakers and residents say the Republican governor's plan to convert a prison into an immigration detention center has come with few details about the transition. The governor's office offered the facility to federal officials for holding 200 to 300 detainees, nicknaming it the the “Cornhusker Clink” in line with other centers like “Alligator Alcatraz” in Florida. The current staff will be retrained, and the state expects federal reimbursement for conversion costs. Concerns have been raised, however, about overcrowding and the governor's authority to offer up a state prison for federal use without legislative approval. The facility is expected to begin housing detainees in October.
Omaha and Lincoln are missing out on tens of thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in wages and tax revenue. According to a report commissioned by the Aksarben Foundation, Omaha and Lincoln are short by a about 68-thousand jobs, 11 billion dollars in wages, and between 600 million and 800 million dollars in lost state tax revenue. The report shows Omaha and Lincoln's annual job growth is less than a half percent, which is about one-fifth as much as similar sized cities.
The Greater Omaha Chamber is launching a fund to help businesses impacted by streetcar construction. The one-million-dollar fund was made possible by an anonymous donor.The money will be used to help at least 50 impacted businesses on Farnam St., west of Turner Boulevard.
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln is proposing millions of dollars in budget cuts. Officials say the 30 million dollars in cuts would eliminate six academic programs including Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Statistics, Educational Administration, Community and Regional Planning, Landscape Architecture and Textile Merchandising and Fashion Design. More than 50 faculty positions would also be cut.
Terence Crawford made history by becoming the first male boxer to capture three unified division titles. He defeated Canelo Alvarez by unanimous decision to win the super middleweight championship. Two judges scored the match 115-113 and the third 116-112 in Crawford’s favor. The fight took place at Allegiant Stadium before a record crowd of 70,482. This was Alvarez's first defeat since May 2022. The event, broadcast on Netflix, attracted significant attention and marked a shift from traditional pay-per-view models. The co-main event saw Callum Walsh defeat Fernando Vargas Jr.
Mark Gronowski threw for two touchdowns and ran for another, and Kaden Wetjen scored two touchdowns as Iowa defeated Massachusetts 47-7 on Saturday, making Kirk Ferentz the Big Ten’s winningest coach. It was the 206th win for Ferentz with the Hawkeyes, passing Ohio State’s Woody Hayes. Gronowski completed touchdown passes of 20 and three yards to Seth Anderson on Iowa’s first two possessions of the game. He added a 13-yard touchdown run late in the first half.