Local troops recognized for helping win Verizon

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By RICHARD PIERSOL / Lincoln Journal Star

They called it Project Seal, when hardly anybody knew it was Verizon Wireless the city of Lincoln and its economic recruiters were courting. 

One of the site consultants was named Mark Sealy.

Fearing the prospect might be presumed to be a mattress factory, the local organizers knocked off the ‘y’ to create their code name.

[+]Enlarge

The new Verizon building. (William Lauer)

The new Verizon building. (William Lauer)

Verizon Job Fairs

Verizon will conduct informational meetings for prospective employees in the next two weeks.

June 21: Workplace Development, Gold’s Galleria, 3-7 p.m.

June 27: 901 W. Bond, 3-7 p.m.

That’s the story Jason Smith, vice president of the Lincoln Partnership for Economic Development,  told those gathered Thursday to celebrate and to recognize some of the scores of unsung local players who had a hand in landing Verizon’s customer service center, now under construction at the University of Nebraska Technology Park.

“I’ve never had a project go through a city as quickly as this project in Lincoln,” said Kent Gregory, national partner in MDG Development,  Verizon’s local landlord. 

And his company has developed real estate in 30 states and Europe.   

“Very early, people did what they said they were going to do,” Gregory said.

The team that moved the project through from March 2006 included private sector volunteers, professionals and public employees just doing their jobs, said Steve Frayser, president of the technology park.

“These are people who actually did something,” Frayser said. 

Ron Rehtus, a plan review engineer for the city’s building and safety department, for example, was in on a preliminary top-secret meeting, unaware of the prospect’s identity, explaining the plan review process, the permit process and regulations.

“We basically knew it was going to be very large,” Rehtus said.

Verizon plans to employ 280 people locally by the end of the year, 800 people in the next two years.

The next step is a couple of job fairs, informational meetings for prospective employees, said Bonnie Edwards, director of Verizon’s new Lincoln operation.

One is Thursday at the state Workforce Development site at Gold’s Galleria downtown, from 3 to 7 p.m. The next one will be June 27 at Verizon’s temporary quarters, 901 W. Bond St. , also 3 to 7 p.m.

Those will be opportunities for prospective employees to hear Verizon’s plan for customer service and details of employment, like benefits.

Those hired won’t necessarily have to show customer service experience, said Karen Opp, a Nebraska native returned to manage human resources at Verizon.

“Anyone with a willingness to help customers,” she said.

Edwards said she is now working on hiring seven supervisors.

Verizon plans to have its first class of 75 trainees in place Sept. 4.

The new building where they will work is about 65 percent complete, and a little ahead of schedule, said Ellen Weinstock, from Verizon’s real estate operations.

Now that the Verizon project is well under way, some of its secrets could be revealed, as they were Thursday.

Local attorney Tom Huston, representing the technology park, was on the road last year in northeast Nebraska,  participating in a conference call about Project Seal on his cell phone.

Reception was not good.

“Can you hear me now?” Huston kept asking, the Verizon advertising catch phrase, still blissfully unaware of the prospect’s identity.

Reach Richard Piersol at 473-7241 or at dpiersol@journalstar.com.