In April 1999,
Union Pacific Corporation, then based in
Dallas, Texas, announced that it would be moving its headquarters to Omaha, Nebraska. Their first headquarters in Omaha was built in 1910 and hadn't been expanded since 1971. Construction of a new Union Pacific headquarters had been speculated for years. However, it wasn't until June, 2001, that plans for a new headquarters were announced. The building would have 19 floors, contain of space, and was at an estimated cost of $260 million. Union Pacific also announced that it would consolidate employees from ten locations in Omaha, with around 700 customer service jobs from
St. Louis, Missouri. The center was built on the former site of the
Rialto Theater, which was demolished in 1986 to make a parking lot. The rest of the buildings were demolished in December 2001. Ground was broken on May 10, 2002, commemorating the 133rd anniversary of the
golden spike. Union Pacific Center officially opened on June 2, 2004. == Design ==