747 Wing House
The 747 Wing House was built on the site where existing Duquette structures had burned. Some of the materials from the previous building were used as walkways. The use of the existing pad minimized site grading. The foundation used many of the existing concrete retaining walls but they were rebuilt and reinforced as required to meet new code regulations. This greatly reduced the amount of concrete needed to make the foundation and new walls. Because the wings are only supported in four primary places to the ground, the foundation was further minimized. Both main wings are held up entirely by the four large mounts that the engines originally hung from. By designing the weight distribution on the mounts, it allowed for the outside walls of the building to be made of high efficiency self-supporting glass instead of conventional load-bearing wooden walls. This maximizes solar gain for heating and allows the entire building to be opened to the outside. This also keeps it cool in the summers and minimizes the need for artificial light.
First National of Nebraska
First National of Nebraska had its roots in the construction of First National Bank of Omaha's headquarters building, First National Center, in the 1960s. It was determined that total expenses, including the $2.5 million already paid to Woodmen of the World and adjoining property owners for land, would come to $13.9 million. It became necessary to form a holding company because there is a statutory limitation on the amount of money a bank is allowed to invest in brick and mortar. The U.S. Code draws the line at 50 percent of the financial institution's capital and surplus account, and they had decided to invest as much in that building, literally, as First National's entire net worth. A parent corporation, acting technically in its own name and on its own behalf, can go ahead and incur a sizable debt for construction purposes without running afoul of federal law, as long as it owns at least 80 percent of its subsidiary's stock. With that in mind, First National Bank's directors created (August 27, 1968) and its shareholders approved (January 21, 1969) First National of Nebraska, Inc.