A Topeka group working to buy the Lawrence Opera House said it would ask for more time to complete the deal during a bankruptcy court hearing that marked the deadline for the group to make the purchase. The Lawrence National Bank, which held the mortgage on the opera house, said it would not fight the delay.

City commissioners said they hoped citizens speaking at an upcoming “town meeting” would tell them just how much of a tax increase citizens would be willing to bear and what services they could do without. The commission was planning its second annual town meeting on the city budget.