Tonight at 5, the Lawrence school board and the Lawrence Education Association are meeting to try and conclude stalled contract negotiations. The meeting is at district headquarters, 110 McDonald Drive, and is open to the public.As we have previously reported, the district and LEA are far apart on several issues, ranging from salaries to planning time.In mid-June, talks between the district and LEA hit a wall. Help from a federal mediator was requested, and is scheduled for Wednesday, unless progress is made tonight.LEA negotiators are asking for $1.85 million more for salaries, to which the district offered $825,728. It also offered an additional $1.1 million, which includes almost $647,000 to start a new retirement system and $324,000 to allow elementary teachers more planning time.The district also proposed adding one day to the work year, making it 187 days for returning teachers and 191 for new teachers. LEA thinks planning time should be an issue independent of compensation.LEA president Adela Solis expressed disappointment that it has taken so long to strike a deal. She said there is a perceptible “chill” between the two sides.”People are very discouraged, exceptionally discouraged,” she said before tonight’s meeting was called. Last week, the district came to LEA with the idea for a meeting.Superintendent Randy Weseman said both sides were interested in reaching a conclusion.It seems likely that the district will sweeten its offer to LEA since the district called the meeting.