WRITER: Chad Lawhorn

New Census numbers show county's older population growing, while younger population begins to shrink; county becoming more racially diverse

Douglas County residents, if your cabinets have a growing amount of Metamucil in them, don’t feel bad. New government statistics show the county is becoming a much older place. But the younger folks must not like our pockets full of Werther’s candy because the same statistics show the county is in the beginning stages of losing its important 18- to 24-year-old population. The Census Bureau recently ...

Bioscience company files plans to expand its North Lawrence headquarters

A Lawrence company that focuses on making particles smaller needs its space to get bigger to keep up with its quest to help deliver cancer-fighting drugs to the pharmaceutical market. CritiTech — a biotech firm that Lawrence leaders long have circled as a company that could grow into a local high-tech success story — has filed plans with the Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Office to expand its North ...

Concrete barriers and graffiti pop up in downtown following denial of Hub project

It is not exactly the Berlin Wall, but some chunks of concrete in downtown Lawrence are drawing some scorn — and some graffiti. A trio of downtown parking lots owned by Lawrence-based Allen Press recently had concrete barriers — like the type you see in construction zones — installed around their perimeter to block any entrances and exits from the parking lots. The parking lots are part of the proposed ...

Fourth of July celebration in Burcham Park back for another year; Live on Mass concert series also to return to downtown

I know people who will put on a scuba suit, if needed, to set off their July 4 fireworks. Hopefully that won’t be necessary, but either way Lawrence is set to throw another Independence Day party down by the Kansas River. Mike Logan, the owner of The Granada and Abe & Jake’s, has signed up for a second year to organize the Lawrence Go Fourth celebration, which will be an evening party at Burcham Park ...

LMH begins process of looking for partners, but says it won't be selling the hospital; look for local online rankings of doctors

For a long time, Lawrence Memorial Hospital has been like Switzerland. (Calm down, this doesn’t involve chocolate, though it may require a trip to the ER if I keep playing with the Swiss Army knife.) Rather, LMH President and CEO Russ Johnson uses the analogy to explain the hospital’s strategy in dealing with other, often larger, health care companies. “We have never really aligned with or fought with ...

Plans filed for $13 million apartment, commercial building in Warehouse Arts District; Turnhalle building also set for renovation

A long-discussed multimillion-dollar apartment and commercial building for the Warehouse Arts District is again on the front burner. Developer Tony Krsnich confirmed his company this week received formal notice that it has been awarded $6.9 million in affordable housing tax credits for a project he’s calling Penn Street Lofts. As we’ve previously reported, Krsnich has long wanted to build a multistory ...

New auto business to locate along Iowa Street; Menards plans small expansion, but talk of larger project reemerges

News and notes from around town: • It used to be if you wanted to be a delivery driver, a Yugo and your mother’s heating pad to keep the pizza warm was about all you needed. But now, thanks to Amazon and other retailers, everything big and small is getting delivered to your house. That’s probably good news for fleet vehicle companies, which sell those white cargo vans and other such automobiles. One ...

Federal dollars now available for victims of last month's tornado; Realtors, local foundation also set up funds to help

Some low-interest loans — and even some grants — are now available for homeowners, renters and businesses that are facing unexpected costs related to last month’s tornado. President Donald Trump’s decision last week to grant a disaster declaration for seven counties hit by a May 28 tornado and thunderstorms comes with some real money for Douglas County. The declaration means that nearly anyone who has ...

Japanese automaker opens new dealership in Lawrence; deal could help spur development near 23rd and O'Connell

As the old joke goes, I have a fast car. The only thing it can’t pass is a gas station. But even so I’m still having a hard time keeping up with the changes in the Lawrence auto market. The latest news is that Mitsubishi has opened a dealership in Lawrence. Lawrence Mitsubishi has opened right next door to Lawrence Kia at 1219 E. 23rd St. The new dealership comes on the heels of Lawrence-based Dale Willey ...

Smaller yards may be coming to eastern Lawrence neighborhood; group looking to revamp old steel company building

Soon enough, I’ll be wishing for a smaller yard as the dandelions become the size of platters and I have to sharpen the machete every time I want to walk to the garden. Look for a new neighborhood in eastern Lawrence to have small yards, but the idea has a lot more to do with affordable housing than lawn care. Plans have been filed for a first-of-its-kind housing development in Lawrence. It is being touted ...

Photos: 2019 Best of Lawrence celebration

About 850 people attended the annual Best of Lawrence winners reveal party Thursday at Abe & Jake's Landing. Full results can be found at bestoflawrence.com and in a special magazine that will be distributed in subscriber copies of the Sunday, June 16, edition of the Journal-World. More photos - Full photo gallery of attendees and winners (181 images)

Downtown juice cafe reopens, this time with unique cocktails and more food

When I have a pair of people come into my kitchen wearing hazmat suits, I simply dismiss it as another set of complaints about the chili. But for anybody else, the sight can be jarring. It certainly was for the folks at Luckyberry in downtown Lawrence last October. “We were really surprised by a visit from the feds,” said Shantel Grace, co-owner of the business at 845 Massachusetts St. Grace said she was ...

Sales tax collections continue to fall in Lawrence, but online shoppers are picking up some of the slack

Here is a sentence I never thought I would say: Maybe online shopping will save the day. Before my banker keels over, let me quickly add that I still don’t believe that, but it may temporarily save the city’s budget. The latest sales tax numbers for the city of Lawrence are out, and an interesting trend is developing. Sales tax collections in the city are falling in 2019. The May sales tax check the city ...

Photo gallery: Tornado ravages multiple homes south of Lawrence

Updated story - Wednesday, May 29 — Latest tornado news and notes: ‘It’s not safe for the general public’ in damaged areas of Douglas County UPDATED: 10:20 a.m. May 29 An area informally known as the Shank Hill neighborhood was hit particularly hard by Tuesday's tornado. At least a dozen homes in the subdivision had significant damage, with many likely to be complete losses. The subdivision is ...

Lawrence ranked one of the best cities for new college graduates, despite some of the lowest wages

Lawrence is one of the best towns in the country for recent college graduates — especially those who slept through economics class. At least that is my takeaway from a new report that ranks Lawrence the eighth best city in America for recent college graduates. The financial news website Business Insider recently published a list of the 20 best metro areas for college graduates looking to start their ...

Lawrence's population growth slows, but it's still in better shape than most cities in Kansas

Lawrence’s population in 2018 grew at its slowest rate in years, according to new figures from the U.S. Census Bureau. The new figures also show that Lawrence continues to live life on the edge. (Don’t worry, that’s not a reference about the Census Bureau knowing what you did last weekend.) Rather, Lawrence seemingly is the western edge of significant growth in the state. Lawrence’s population in ...

Downtown breakfast, lunch spot opening soon in west Lawrence; a bloody Mary with a beef jerky twist also set to arrive

Morrie Sheets, owner of the new Jimmy’s Egg restaurants in Lawrence, has a better alarm clock than I have. “When I smell bacon at 5 a.m., I know it is time to get up,” Sheets said. Sheets, who owns Jimmy’s Egg restaurants across the state, lives in an apartment above the Lawrence restaurant at 10th and Massachusetts streets in downtown. (For the record, when I smell bacon at 5 a.m., I hope the ...

Lawrence home sales off to their slowest start in years; selling prices begin to fall slightly

With all the rain, maybe you too are considering that the best home is a houseboat. (I think my household is giving it serious consideration based on the number of times I’m told to go jump in a lake.) Regardless, something has caused traditional home sales in Lawrence to take a nosedive. The local real estate market is definitely off to a slow start in 2019, based on the latest numbers from the Lawrence ...

New health care building to be constructed near west Lawrence Walmart, plus other news and notes from around town

Look for construction to begin soon on a new building near the Walmart in west Lawrence. While that area has attracted a host of new restaurants — Old Chicago, Spin Pizza and Blue Moose, among others — this project is on the other side of the street, where they must be a little more practical. A dentist’s office will be the main tenant of this new building. The Kansas City-based real estate firm Block ...

National food delivery company targets Lawrence; North Lawrence bar and unique downtown gift shop announce closures

  News and notes from around town: • It used to be if a waiter showed up at my door, it was a sign that I took way too many of the complimentary breath mints. Now, it's just evidence that another tech company looking to combine the internet and dining has chosen Lawrence as a potential hot market. A company called Waitr has chosen Lawrence and Topeka to make its Kansas debut. The Louisiana-based ...