WRITER: Chad Lawhorn

Lawrence home sales soar, but so do home prices, as Fed cuts interest rates, latest report shows

This seems backward to me, but August was both the time for back to school and back to looking for a new house. That’s odd because I’ve found that when my kids go back to school, my current house becomes much more livable. Regardless, Lawrence home sales soared in August. Home sales through much of 2019 have been stagnant or declining in Lawrence. But in August, they were robust. Real estate agents sold ...

KC auto dealer officially takes over at 2 south Iowa dealerships; as grocery market changes, Walmart gets more aggressive in delivery business

A few news and notes from around town: • I don’t know if you ever wonder what causes a Kansas City company to decide to expand into Lawrence, but I do occasionally. Most of the time, the answer is college kids. But every once in awhile, it is Goldilocks. At least that is what I’ve found as it relates to some of the big changes happening in the local auto market. The change is now official at one of ...

Company seeking tax break likely to produce jobs near $70K; questions emerge why commissioners got information that public didn't

The Journal-World has learned a company seeking tax breaks and free land to locate in a Lawrence industrial park will provide jobs near $70,000 a year at its high-skilled manufacturing plant. While that news is likely to be cheered by community members seeking better-paying jobs, the information also is creating questions about whether the city’s program to provide tax breaks and other incentives to ...

Auto repair shop moves near Warehouse Arts District; a reason for people to hope Old Navy will return to Lawrence

An auto repair shop in an arts district makes a lot of sense. Anytime I’ve created art, critics have said they would love to drive a truck through it. A longtime Lawrence auto shop indeed has made a move off of 23rd Street and now finds itself down the street from art and other such culture. Slimmer's Automotive Services opened at Ninth and Delaware earlier this month. The shop may not technically be in the ...

Hy-Vee closing Sixth Street grocery store in November

Updated at 11:50 a.m. Thursday Slow sales along a stretch of road crowded with grocery stores has Hy-Vee closing its store near Sixth Street and Monterey Way in west Lawrence later this year. The grocery store chain will close its store at 4000 W. Sixth St. at 10 p.m. on Nov. 3, though the convenience store that sits next to the fuel pumps at the location will remain open, the company said in a news ...

From nuts and bolts to shoes and shirts, sporting apparel store opens in old downtown hardware spot

The walls at the old Ernst & Son Hardware store in downtown Lawrence were a lot like the Loch Ness monster: rumored to exist but rarely seen. Past customers of the mom-and-pop hardware store know what I mean. The old store was so packed with nuts, bolts, tools, wagon wheel parts — really, he had some — that you could see everything but the walls that were holding the roof up on the place. But now the ...