News and notes from around town:

• Town Talk on Monday morning will be focusing on one part of town in particular. I’ll be moderating a “Downtown Roundtable” with four of the larger property owners and business leaders of downtown. The purpose of the roundtable is to bring together some downtown leaders who don’t always get a chance to sit down and have an extended conversation. I’ll pose several questions about downtown’s past and future and see where the conversation goes.

The four individuals who have agreed to participate are:

1. Doug Compton, president of First Management Inc. and owner of multiple downtown properties.
2. George Paley, a former downtown retailer who now owns multiple buildings throughout downtown.
3. Bob Schumm, a city commissioner and a longtime restaurant owner who also owns commercial property downtown.
4. Earl Reineman, vice president of Weavers Inc., the largest retailer in Downtown Lawrence.

The discussion will begin at about 9:45 a.m. on Monday. We’ll have a live blog of the discussion so you can follow along as it happens or read it later at your convenience. If you have some issues you’d like addressed, leave them in the comment section below and I’ll consider them for inclusion in the discussion.

In a few weeks (the timeline is still a little shaky) look for a broader article on downtown that examines ownership patterns along Massachusetts Street, how property values have changed and other issues surrounding the downtown.