Members of the Town Center Venture group seeking a redevelopment project in the 600 block of Massachusetts said they had talked with several experienced firms about negotiating with department stores and operating their planned shopping center. Representatives said their $15 million estimate of the public cost for the project did not include buying and renovating the Lawrence Opera House, which they said should be left up to the city.

The Midwestern Governors Conference in session here gave unanimous support to a resolution designed to stabilize federal farm policy. But afterward, several said they didn’t expect the “localized” plan supported by Kansas Gov. John Carlin to make it through Congress – for practical political reasons.