The Douglas County Commission at its meeting Wednesday approved an engineering plan to extend Wakarusa Drive, but the timing of it could clash with another KDOT project and cause problems for first-responders, some at the meeting said. Commissioners approved an approximately $91,000 contract for BG Consultants to begin preliminary engineering work needed to extend Wakarusa Drive to a point south of the ...
Ever since Lawrence became a two high school town in the late 1990s, 15th Street — also known as Bob Billings Parkway in parts of the community — has been one of the more significant markers in the city. Public school children who live north of 15th Street/Bob Billings Parkway attend Free State High. Those who live south of the street attend Lawrence High. Now, there’s talk that all of that may change. ...
A county-hired consultant anticipates a $1.4 million to $2.2 million wage gap for county employees, and county commissioners on Wednesday will be briefed on how those employees might need to be paid more in the future. McGrath, a human resource group, has put together a draft report that examines how county employee wages compare to average wages for similar jobs in the broader region surrounding Lawrence. The ...
The Lawrence school district on Monday heard from several teachers about the cell phone policy for the middle schools and high schools. They came with a petition signed by 84 of their peers in the hopes of making changes to the district’s policy. The policy, “which leaves room for teacher discretion and requires some (cellphones) to simply be, ‘put away and out of sight,’ is problematic,” said ...
The Lawrence school board could soon authorize a study of the district's middle and high school athletic facilities to determine what kinds of repairs and improvements they will need in the future. According to the agenda for its meeting on Monday, the school board will be considering an athletic facilities master planning study for the four middle schools and two high schools. The study would be conducted by ...
At the Kansas Land Trust’s annual fundraising event, the organization announced the goal to close on three conservation easements by the end of the summer. On Thursday, the Kansas Land Trust hosted its Summer Solstice Celebration at Cider Gallery to raise funds and awareness for the 30-year-old nonprofit. The organization works with willing landowners to develop voluntary conservation agreements to preserve ...