WRITER: Chad Lawhorn

KU chancellor, leader of local chamber among the newest class to be inducted into Lawrence Business Hall of Fame

From a provider of good times to a teacher of the good book, the Lawrence Business Hall of Fame has selected its newest inductees. The class includes Kevin O’Malley, president of Lawrence-based O’Malley Beverage — one of the larger beer and liquor wholesalers in the region — and Father Mick Mulvany, who was the longtime leader of Lawrence’s Corpus Christi Catholic Church. Also included in the group ...

Retiring Emporia State president donating the last four years of his salary back to the university

As Emporia State’s president gets ready to retire from his position later this month, he’s giving the university a gift — the last four years of his salary, more or less. The university announced Wednesday that outgoing President Ken Hush has made a pledge to the university that is equal to the compensation he earned serving as ESU’s president for the last four years. Hush — an Emporia native and ...

Lawrence police chief tells community group about recruiting challenges; perception that city dislikes police is hurting

At one point, Lawrence Police Chief Rich Lockhart liked his odds. His department had 10 police officer vacancies, but 100 people had applied to fill the positions. From that 100, Lockhart’s team selected 20 applicants to be considered for the Lawrence Police Department’s multi-month academy that trains new law enforcement officers. In other words, there was good reason to believe that when the academy ...

Plan for $50M soccer, sports complex in south Lawrence won't have preliminary City Hall vote on Tuesday

A plan to build a new soccer/sports complex at the U.S. Highway 59 and South Lawrence Trafficway interchange won’t have a preliminary vote at Lawrence City Hall on Tuesday, as once scheduled. But the delay isn’t a sign that the project has encountered approval difficulty, a representative of the development group said Monday. Instead, the delay is a procedural one requested by Lawrence’s new mayor. The ...

Eudora in early stages of approving 100-acre industrial park near K-10; search is on for other county industrial sites

A hunt is on to find 500 acres of Douglas County land suitable for industrial development, and Eudora might end up producing the first trophy. Douglas County economic development leaders on Thursday said they were excited about the possibility of a new 100-acre industrial park forming on the eastern edge of Eudora. The project is not a done deal, but it won a key rezoning vote from the Eudora Planning ...

From a $50M soccer complex to 700 acres of new housing, developer seeking to expand city past SLT

A Wichita-based developer is pursuing more than $1 billion worth of new projects both south and west of Lawrence — with a $50 million soccer/sports complex and 700 acres of residential development topping the list. Phil Bundy, a Wichita entrepreneur who has led a host of retail and residential projects over the years, has long been the developer of record for the land at the southeast intersection of U.S. ...