After Douglas County Commission Chair Michelle Derusseau said she did not plan to attend a White House summit, calling it a “publicity stunt,” a member of Republican President Donald Trump’s staff has accused her of partisanship. The three Douglas County commissioners were invited — ...
Douglas County commissioners on Wednesday approved their 2020 budget for publication with a mill levy increase that is slightly smaller than what they discussed the week prior. Interim County Administrator Sarah Plinsky said a change in the zoning department’s budget lowered the required ...
President Donald Trump has been inviting county leaders nationwide to summits at the White House. Douglas County Commission Chair Michelle Derusseau said she did not plan to attend the upcoming “publicity stunt.” All three county commissioners were invited — along with other ...
The owner of a property on the northern outskirts of Lawrence wants to build a boat storage and ministorage facility there, but several neighbors have petitioned against the plan. The Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission voted 5-5 on the conditional use permit at its June 24 meeting, ...
Two local organizations recently supplied funding to a University of Kansas addiction program to help it expand its services in Douglas County. The university announced in a news release that its Cofrin Logan Center for Addiction Research and Treatment received a grant from the Douglas County ...
Douglas County District Court Chief Judge Peggy Kittel recently shared with county leaders several concerns about security in the local hub of criminal justice. “I have to say, we are really lucky that we have not had an incident here,” she told Douglas County commissioners during their ...
Though Douglas County commissioners have not given final approval to a 2020 budget, they did reach a consensus Wednesday on a plan that would raise the mill levy by 0.429 mills. If approved, the budget would raise the mill levy from 46.015 to 46.444. That’s a total of roughly $1,068 in ...
Douglas County commissioners at their Wednesday work session will discuss possibilities for a downtown master plan that would address some space issues. The county hired the architecture firm Gould Evans to conduct a space needs study in 2017. The study found that the county's downtown ...
Representatives for the City of Lawrence and the local firefighters union continue to disagree on how much of a wage increase is needed to keep firefighter pay competitive, and contract negotiations could soon require mediation. Negotiations between the city and the union, Local 1596, are ...
Douglas County commissioners’ regular Wednesday evening meeting is canceled this week, but they will meet in the morning for budget deliberations. The commission held budget hearings with various county departments and county-supported agencies last week and Monday for its 2020 budget. They ...
Story updated at 3:03 p.m. Monday, July 1: The Douglas County district attorney says his office already has programs successfully diverting numerous simpler cases from court. Taking those efforts to the next level won’t be as simple or cheap. “We’re getting down to the hard cases,” ...
A Douglas County ordinance prohibiting businesses from selling tobacco products to people under the age of 21 appears to be safe from legal challenges. The Kansas Supreme Court on Friday issued a ruling upholding the City of Topeka’s ordinance that prohibits the sale of tobacco products, ...
Interim Fire Chief Shaun Coffey has been hired as the new chief of the Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical Department, Lawrence City Manager Tom Markus announced Thursday. Markus, who appointed Coffey as interim chief in July 2018, said in a city news release that he had watched Coffey lead ...
A survey of a site proposed for behavioral health housing in northern Lawrence has not turned up archeological or human remains, clearing the way for the much-anticipated Douglas County behavioral health campus to move forward. Earlier this year, the Delaware Tribe, which once inhabited the ...
Douglas County commissioners on Wednesday approved expanding a program in which care coordinators “walk with” clients through behavioral health recovery, as its supporters put it. Bob Tryanski, the county’s director of behavioral health projects, and Stacey Cooper, supervisor of ...
It’s a good time for public health officials to get in on the ground floor — before the debate really kicks into full gear — on legalization of marijuana in Kansas, a subject expert says. Andrew Freedman, who was the state of Colorado’s first director of marijuana coordination, gave ...
An app that offers abundant resources for mental and physical health and wellness is now available for free to Douglas County residents. The Douglas County Commission approved a contract for the app, called myStrength, at its Jan. 30 meeting. It’s now online and available for free to anyone ...
Douglas County commissioners on Wednesday will consider expanding a wraparound behavioral health program to make it available seven days a week. Intensive Care Coordination, or ICC, services are made available to some clients who visit the emergency room, have contact with law enforcement or ...
City, county and school district leaders say they want to work together in their efforts to address equity issues in the community, and they took a first step toward doing so Monday. Elected leaders and officials from the City of Lawrence, Douglas County and the Lawrence school district met ...
Budget hearing schedule updated at 3:08 p.m. Monday, July 1: Based on a change to the city of Lawrence budget, Douglas County may have to chip in an extra $263,067 in overhead for Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical in 2020. Next year, the city will move its human resources, information ...