WRITER: Bremen Keasey

Attendees of Lawrence Chamber discussion of proposed government restructure express hesitancy about changes

As speakers described proposed changes to the structure of Lawrence’s government during a presentation to the Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday, some in the audience expressed hesitancy about the need for change. The event featured presentations from John Nalbandian, a former mayor of Lawrence and professor at the University of Kansas who chaired the task force that provided recommendations for the change of the ...

Lawrence city commissioners support proposed 'road diet' on Ninth Street that adds protected bike lanes

City commissioners have voted in favor of a proposed "road diet" that would reduce the number of lanes for cars along a portion of Ninth Street between downtown Lawrence and the University of Kansas and add protected bike lanes. At their meeting Tuesday, commissioners reviewed the plan that would redesign Ninth Street from Illinois Street to Vermont Street and voted 4-1 to recommend that it proceed. ...

City Commission could give key land use approval for construction of new public safety building

UPDATED 11:45 a.m. Oct. 1 City commissioners have a chance to give another step in the approval process for construction of a new 26,275-square-foot public safety building near the Douglas County Jail. Plans for the new building — which would serve as a headquarters for the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, the 911 dispatch center and the county’s emergency management center — are also tied in with ...

In the conversation about possibly relocating City Hall, the need for space and employee flexibility will be key

Omar Maali thinks of one photo of a conference room that tells a story about the space in Lawrence’s City Hall. In a presentation given to the City Commission on Sept. 10 that outlined plans to potentially move away from the current building at 6 E. Sixth St., one of the slides showed that photo as an example of the “challenges” of the current location. In it, you can see two hastily created desks, stuck ...

City Commission will review proposal to reduce the number of lanes for cars, add protected bike lanes on portion of Ninth Street

City leaders will soon review a plan that could reduce the number of lanes for cars and add new lanes for bikes on a portion of Ninth Street between downtown Lawrence and the University of Kansas. On Tuesday, the Lawrence City Commission will provide its input on a proposed redesign of Ninth Street from Illinois Street to Vermont Street. Currently the street has four lanes of motor vehicle traffic, two in each ...

Group that helped return prayer rock to the Kaw Nation wants more input on how to honor Indigenous people at Robinson Park

Community members shared their input on possible changes to downtown Lawrence's tiny Robinson Park — including changing its name or adding an Indigenous monument — at an open house hosted by the Sacred Red Rock Project on Thursday. The group wants public feedback on what the park's future should be now that the prayer rock that once stood there, Iⁿ’zhúje’waxóbe, has been returned to the Kaw Nation. ...