Mark Fagan / LJWorld.com

Staff

Mark Fagan (Transportation reporter)

Mark was born in Newport, R.I., and - as the son of a career Navy officer - grew up near water: in the San Diego, Seattle and Washington, D.C. metro areas. His first official residence in the Midwest came in 1986, when he moved to Lawrence to attend Kansas University, where he would receive a degree in journalism.

Mark has been reporting stories for much of his life. His first professional gig included covering sports at his high school for a local paper in northern Virginia; then came internships in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Wichita, and part-time work for the Kansas City Star and Times.

He worked for the Hutchinson News briefly before returning to Lawrence in November 1992 to join the staff at the Journal-World.

When he's not at work, Mark enjoys eating bacon, playing golf and softball, and trying to keep up with his wife, Susie - whose running credits include completion of the Boston Marathon - and their two kids, Erin and Max.

You can follow him on Twitter, where he provides instant updates on news and what's going on in Lawrence.

Recent stories

Oread hotel on schedule for debut in February: By Mark Fagan; July 6, 2009; The view from up here, some 90 feet above street level, affords Casey Stewart some perspective that few others get a chance to enjoy. The distant sight lines from The Oread — well past Sixth Street to the north, into the Wakarusa River valley to the south, De Soto to the east and down onto Mark Mangino’s football practice field to the west — won’t be ultra-exclusive visions for much longer.
Survey rates 5 counties on transit satisfaction: By Mark Fagan; July 5, 2009; When it comes to both street maintenance and traffic flow on major roads and highways, Douglas County residents are more unhappy than their neighbors, according to a survey conducted for the Kansas Department of Transportation.
Naismith repaving work to include video connections: By Mark Fagan; July 5, 2009; One of the busiest streets in Lawrence during some of the most heated nights of winter soon could get some help cooling drivers’ frustrations.
Wheel genius: Road work this week: By Mark Fagan; July 5, 2009; Among major road projects scheduled in the area for the coming week:
Geologists’ drilling project digs up past: Survey investigates resources deep within Earth’s crust; By Mark Fagan; July 4, 2009; Dave Newell and his associates are drilling through 300 million years of history, with only another 1.3 billion years left to go.
Fuel pumping again at turnpike service area: By Mark Fagan; July 2, 2009; New gasoline and diesel pumps are cranking out fuel at the Lawrence Service Area along the Kansas Turnpike, ending a six-month drought brought on by a multimillion-dollar upgrade.
Former Junction City commissioner indicted in development scheme: By Mark Fagan; July 1, 2009; A former Junction City commissioner faces charges that he accepted payments and gifts from a Lawrence builder who was seeking insider deals to develop hundreds of homes in connection with an anticipated building boom related to a troop buildup at nearby Fort Riley.
Lawrence builder pleads guilty in bank fraud case, will testify against others: By Mark Fagan; 11:28 a.m., June 30, 2009 Updated 02:40 p.m.; David Ray Freeman, a Lawrence builder, pleaded guilty Tuesday to conspiring to commit bank fraud in connection with an anticipated building boom in Junction City.
Bank agrees to curb its lending activity: By Mark Fagan; June 30, 2009; University National Bank isn’t writing many new loans for construction or development, now that the community bank is operating under an agreement with federal banking regulators.
University National Bank curbs loan exposure to conform to regulators’ standards: By Mark Fagan; June 29, 2009; University National Bank isn’t writing many new loans for construction or development, now that the community bank is operating under an agreement with federal banking regulators.

Full story list

Recent photos

Messages for Mother's Day are rising on the fronts and sides of some KU on Wheels buses.

Some KU on Wheels drivers are using their bus message windows to alert students to what's important: Calling home to wish mom a happy Mother's Day, which is Sunday.

Episodes of "Friends" are among the master negatives stored at Underground Vaults and Storage in Hutchinson.

"Frankly, my dear, I could use some better company." Then again, Clark Gable (as Rhett Butler) might consider Jennifer Aniston to be an upgrade from co-star Vivien Leigh (Scarlett O'Hara) from "Gone With the Wind." A master negative of the classic movie shares shelf space with Aniston and her "Friends" TV series. Copies of "Murphy Brown" and "Growing Pains" also are kept in the secure storage area, inside a former salt mine.

Master negatives of classic films, such as "Gone With the Wind," are stored for safe-keeping. The contents are meticulously catalogued, so that their owners easily can locate and retrieve them.

Full photo list