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Clarice Dombeck Makes her Pitch for Regional Metropolitan Transit Board

Posed photo of Clarice Dombeck
Clarice Dombeck is running to represent District 2 on the Regional Metropolitan Transit Board. Board members were appointed by the mayor prior to this election.

Clarice Dombeck is a candidate for the Regional Metropolitan Transit Authority’s Board of Directors in District 2. The Transit Authority, also known as Metro, is responsible for running Omaha’s bus system, including ORBT and MOBY services.

The first elected board will have seven nonpartisan members, one for each district. Prior to this year, seats were appointed by the mayor rather than elected. The change is part of Metro’s increased budget and expanded regional services. Board responsibilities include determining transit policy, overseeing the budget and handling contracts

Dombeck was born and raised in North Omaha. In addition to her candidacy, she serves on Elevate Omaha’s Board of Directors and is the urban development manager at Spark, an Omaha nonprofit that aims to transform and invest in underserved neighborhoods.

Dombeck is also an urban farmer and a founder of the Healing Roots African Diaspora Garden on North 24th Street, and she’s working on a Master of Science in Urban Studies at the University of Nebraska Omaha.

In this conversation, Dombeck is in conversation with Michael Griffin about her family’s history of community organizing, and how it informs her own varied approach to advocacy. They also discuss transit disparities in Omaha and Dombeck’s vision for Metro if she wins her election in November against David Levy.

Correction: A previous version of this post incorrectly identified the Regional Metropolitan Transit Authority as being responsible for the forthcoming Omaha Streetcar. It is a City of Omaha project.

Courtney is back in her hometown after graduating from the University of Kansas in 2019 with degrees in journalism and film. While at KU, she was the arts and culture editor of the University Daily Kansan and had a summer internship at KCUR, Kansas City's NPR member station.
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