From the Lawrence Daily Journal-World for May 24, 1986:

• A team of downtown revitalization authorities had reported to city officials that neither a downtown mall nor a “suburban” mall would be appropriate for Lawrence. The team had concluded that an enclosed shopping mall in downtown Lawrence would “destroy much of that which now makes downtown Lawrence a unique shopping area.” Several city commissioners disagreed with the group’s recommendations, saying that a carefully integrated mall could “blend in” with the area and be an enhancement rather than a monolithic structure that would overwhelm the “human scale” and design of downtown.
• At a three-hour meeting, the Lawrence Art Guild’s board of directors decided to poll its members on how they preferred artists to be selected for the yearly Art in the Park show. The controversial selection process had come under discussion after a board committee had received a petition, containing about 1,000 signatures, which had been circulated at the “Art Out of the Park” show. The show had been held concurrently with Art in the Park as a protest from artists whose works had not been selected.
• Local auto dealers Steve Noller and his father Laird Noller had sold their Toyota franchise and building, as well as their AMC-Jeep-Renault franchise and building, to Jim Ellena. The Nollers were keeping their Ford, Lincoln-Mercury and Mazda dealerships.
• Riverside School teacher Russell Blackbird had recently won the Lawrence school district’s Vicki Larason Landman Memorial Award for non-sexist teaching.