The Lawrence City Commission on Tuesday approved spending $15,750 to pay for a community summit that will kick-start the process of attracting a federal national heritage area designation.

The summit, planned for late January, will be attended by roughly 40 community leaders, including historians, elected officials and others.

Officials believe a federal designation of a national heritage area will draw federal dollars to help Lawrence and northeast Kansas preserve the area’s Civil War history :quot; and promote that link to tourists.

Proponents hope a designation can be made by 2004, when Lawrence and the Kansas Territory will celebrate their 150th anniversaries.

Twenty-three heritage areas are already in the national park system, although the land and management remain in private hands.