Lawrence city commissioners agreed to keep moving forward on a process to create design guidelines for the Oread neighborhood.

Commissioners on Tuesday agreed to have the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission study proposed design guidelines for the neighborhood next to Kansas University.

Commissioners at their weekly meeting were told a draft copy of the design guidelines wasn’t yet completed, but a consultant for the city explained some of the details.

Scott Day, with Urban Development Services, told commissioners the guidelines do not focus so much on architectural details, but rather on building sizes, positioning of buildings on lots and appropriate ways to incorporate parking into designs.

The document also makes recommendations for items to preserve in the neighborhood, such as some of the mature trees that give the neighborhood character.

“There aren’t a lot of neighborhoods in the U.S. that still have that cathedral-like tree canopy on their streets,” Day said while showing pictures of the area just north of Memorial Stadium. “It is really remarkable.”

The design guidelines ultimately will come back to city commissioners for final approval but not likely until next year.