Younes Landing Transforms Kearney, NE, Into a Tourism + Entertainment Hub
Exciting developments are taking shape in Kearney, NE, particularly at Younes Landing off I-80. Younes Landing is a large-scale project by hospitality industry planners Paul Younes and Maggie Younes-Holz, owners of Kearney-based Younes Hospitality. While parts of the campus are already open, including Kearney SportsPlex and Kearney Welcome Center, the growing entertainment and tourism district will eventually add features like restaurants, bars, a women-focused gym, hotels and Drop Zone, a facility featuring golf and pickleball activities.
Sports Destination
Kearney SportsPlex opened in April 2025. Its goal is to become a regional sports tourism destination, and a health and wellness resource for locals. The expansive facility hosts sports camps, clinics and tournaments, and many of its courts, fields and other amenities are available for rent.
“During our first three months, we accommodated more than 20,000 visitors and already booked future events well into 2026,” says Lauren Brandt, director of Kearney SportsPlex. “Those first three months also saw us host sporting competitions that attracted teams from Nebraska as well as Iowa, Colorado, South Dakota and Kansas.”
SportsPlex amenities include:
- A gymnasium with eight basketball courts that can be converted into 12 volleyball courts
- Indoor turf that can be used for soccer, field hockey, lacrosse and flag football
- Four pickleball courts
- Three drop-down batting cages for baseball and softball
- A mezzanine-level indoor running/walking track
“The entire Younes Landing area is amazing and will put Kearney on the map as a major entertainment destination,” Brandt says. “It will allow people to play, stay, shop, meet and eat, all within walking distance of everything.”
Welcome to Kearney
The Kearney Welcome Center, which opened in January 2025, serves as the city’s front door for visitors and residents. It is housed in the spacious Kearney Partnership Building, which was constructed by the Kearney Area Chamber of Commerce. The building also houses Buffalo County Economic Development and Visit Kearney.
“The new building has office space for our three entities, three shared meeting spaces and the 2,000-square-foot Welcome Center,” says Derek Rusher, Kearney Area Chamber interim president/CEO.
“We had over 175 meetings in the building in our first six months of operation. Our community is utilizing our spaces.”
When guests enter Kearney Welcome Center, a locally inspired mural and whimsical sandhill crane models greet them. Kearney is known as the Sandhill Crane Capital of the World, as 80% of the world’s sandhill cranes migrate along the Platte River between late February and early April.
The center also features exhibits and attractions devoted to the Platte River Valley and an interactive map featuring Kearney’s many attractions.
Community Building
In July 2025, the Nebraska Department of Economic Development awarded Kearney a Good Life District designation. A Good Life District is a tourist-oriented area within a city where a large-scale development project is focused on retail and entertainment to generate new economic activity, create jobs and attract visitors.
Kearney’s Good Life District will be developed on 200 available acres in Younes Landing that surround the SportsPlex. It will include retail, restaurants and other attractions. A key incentive of the designation is that Nebraska will give Kearney half of the state sales taxes generated within the district’s boundaries for up to 30 years.
“The Good Life District is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the Kearney area,” Rusher says. “It represents strategic growth, smart investment and a bold vision for our future. This is more than economic development. It is community building at its best.”
Get to Know Kearney
Want to learn more about living and working in Kearney, NE? Check out the latest edition of Livability Kearney, Nebraska.