While HeidiTown Consulting continues to grow, I want to make it crystal clear that HeidiTown.com is still the place to come for road trips and festival stories. However, I’ve gone way too long without posting. I’ve been busy being stuck in Kearney, Nebraska, and if I were a better human, I would have written a post on my “stuck” day, but I’m not. Instead, I spent my time frantically texting my husband and checking for updates on whether Interstate 80 was reopened.
Thank god the lobby at the Crowne Plaza is super swanky.
I was in Kearney because I was a speaker at the Nebraska Planning Conference, something I’d been looking forward to for a couple of months. My session was entitled: Love Where You Live, The Why & The How. You didn’t expect me to speak about planning or zoning, did you? By the way, I had been in Kearney once in 2019.
I did learn some stuff, especially in a presentation called “Coordinating the Comprehensive Plan & Zoning Regulations,” by Marvin Planning Consultants, Inc. I won’t lie, some of the info went over my head, but I did learn the nuts and bolts.
My presentation was on Wednesday, after my five-hour drive from Loveland, Colorado, which probably wasn’t a wise idea, however, that’s how I had planned it. I might do it a little differently in the future.
Speaking with a group of planners and city folks was a wonderful experience, and the questions and thoughts from the group after my presentation were insightful.
On Thursday morning, I breakfasted at Good Evans, which was just minutes from my hotel. My hotel was conveniantly attached to Younes Conference Center North, the site of our conference. The night before I had eaten a splendid steak at Coppermill Steakhouse, so I stuck with the beef theme and had the Nebraksa Benedict. When in Rome! It features braised short ribs, and it is delicious.
The rest of the morning I spent in sessions and at an entertaining and enlightening keynote by Angela D. Brooks, the president of the American Planning Association. She spoke about overcoming housing obstacles, something that’s a nationwide issue, affecting not just economic developers but all of us.
That afternoon, I took time off from the conference and did a bit of exploring in downtown Kearney. We hadn’t been since 2019 and only spent a night in town at that time.
Although it was overcast and chilly, because unknown to all of us, a big snowstorm was coming, I walked downtown. I enjoyed Central Mercantile from the moment I stepped inside. The bakery makes the space smell like heaven. They sell those neat kitchen supplies that I rarely, if ever, buy myself, but love receiving as gifts. It’s also a coffee shop, bakery and cafe.
Central Mercantile is a must-stop should you find yourself in Kearney. Please say “hi” to Ginger for me. I bent her ear while there, and she’s the nicest human.
The next stop is a place we found on our last visit to Kearney, and it’s been on my top best beer bars list ever since. There are just a few standouts. For instance, Tap and Handle in Fort Collins, Colorado, is a longtime favorite.
McCue’s Taproom is a beer bar serving only Nebraska craft beer. And they have a lot of taps. Before we stumbled in here five years ago, we didn’t know Nebraska had so many breweries, and it was a pleasant surprise. I bought Ryan a McCue’s Taproom t-shirt, a friend a bottle of Nebraska wine (yes, they have bottles for sale), and I had a pint of Pint Nine Neon 9’s, a New England-style IPA from Papillion, Nebraska. A hazy brewed with Citra, Mosaic, and Strata hops, I liked it a lot.
I am including the following photo of Celebration on Central, a cool little party store in downtown Kearney. I was looking for a bottle of Nebraska wine and thought they’d likely know a place. Turns out, the owner was outgoing, helpful, and deserves a shout-out. She’s just the kind of person you want interacting with visitors in your town!
That evening I went to the Nebraska Planning Conference Awards Banquet, where I happened to sit at an award-winning table. Nearly everyone at my table won! I love these sorts of award banquets. I think it’s an honor to bear witness to the acknowledgment of a person’s hard work.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t give a shout-out to, a longtime HeidiTown citizen and senior community planner at Marvin Planning Consultants, John Shepard. When I get to meet a supporter of this little town, it’s a big deal. Shepard, who used to live in Colorado, now resides in Nebraska. I want to give a “hello” to Paula Dennison, City Administer at the City of Gretna. She made me feel so welcome and even bought my dinner at Coppermill Steakhouse. Gretna, you’re lucky to have her!
The next morning I woke up to this.
I swear, when watching the newscast the night before, the weatherman said it wouldn’t stick. The size of this storm was a little surprising to everyone. The plan was to get up, eat at Fyre Modern Grill, the hotel’s restaurant, and go. This storm had other ideas for me. As one colleague wrote on LinkedIn, “Nebraska decided to keep you.”
Interstate 80, the best route home to Loveland, Colorado, was closed. After downing a cup of coffee from Starbucks, also in the hotel, I ate breakfast at Fyre, listening to scary blizzard traffic stories from everyone around me. The weather was the number one discussion, and I discovered that even the people attending the conference from nearby North Platte had decided to stay another night.
By the time I decided to stay another night (because it didn’t look like Interstate 80 was going to reopen), the Crowne Plaza was full. Thankfully, they called around for me and found a room at the Holiday Inn Express across the freeway. By the way, not only were hotels full from the closure of the freeway but there was a wrestling tournament in town.
I wish I could tell you that I made the best of the day, visiting this and that, but I spent my time watching the snow fall sideways from the lobby of the Crowne Plaza. When I did finally leave for the Holiday Inn Express, it was afternoon and I was so tired. Tired from stressing.
Yes, I travel a lot, but this by no means makes me a perfect traveler. Part of the issue is that Ryan was leaving our home that same day for a racquetball tournament in Pueblo, Colorado and we had made no arrangements for Fritzi, our dog. So, we scrambled, and I spent a lot of time feeling helpless. Also, the weather was bad, and I didn’t feel like driving around in it. Thank you to Michelle Osborn who kindly watched our crazy dog and even took her on a two-mile walk. Lucky (spoiled) dog!
So, that’s the story. I ate a lonely dinner at Skeeter Barnes, in the parking lot of my hotel, and then, after watching a couple of old episodes of “The Office,” I went to bed.
The next morning the sun shone, and as I checked out and loaded my luggage into my car, several flocks of snow geese flew overhead.
Related: Birds in North Platte with Dusty Trails
The drive home was uneventful except for a brief drive around North Platte seeking Sandhill Cranes. Alas, the deep snow, North Platte got more than 15 inches from the storm, kept most hidden away trying to stay warm. I did see one distant flock, huddled together next to a pile of hay. I have been to Nebraska several times in the past to witness crane migration and it should be on your bucket list, whether you’re a bird nerd or not.
I stopped in at the Golden Spike Tower, which I’d visited previously.
Related: Trains, Trains & More Trains in North Platte, Nebraska
This place has excellent and free coffee and nice bathrooms (both of which I utilized on this trip). Plus I had a delightful chat with the lady behind the desk and fellows drinking coffee there. I’d highly recommend visiting. If you are a “train person” it’s a must, but even if you aren’t it’s a fascinating look at an industry that has been and still is one of the most vital in the country. Also, this railyard is the world’s largest.
I made it home, where I was greeted with a bouquet of roses from Ryan and the most excited canine. Fritzi must have thought I was never coming back, but sorry Nebraska, you didn’t get to keep me! However, I have not been deterred, and I will be back.
I do want to point out that the staff at the Crowne Plaza was so friendly and helpful, from the bartenders and waiters at Fyre to housekeeping, everyone was gracious. Also, the front desk women at Holiday Inn Express were incredibly friendly, which was good because by the time I got there, I was mentally fried. Thanks for the memories, Kearney!
