Story updated at 11:30 a.m. Friday, Nov. 7: Lawrence City Manager Craig Owens will be leaving his job with the city in May of 2026, the city announced in a news release Friday morning. Owens was hired in 2019 after the previous city manager, Tom Markus, retired. The news release did not provide any details about the hiring process for Owens' replacement, but it said that Owens would remain "fully engaged in ...
Tiny homes, tenant education, senior apartments and a handful of other projects are all seeking money from the city's affordable housing trust in 2026, and an advisory board next week will start the process of figuring out what to fund. The Affordable Housing Trust Fund is supported by a local sales tax measure that voters approved in 2017, and next year there will be $1.2 million available to distribute — ...
Lawrence city commissioners next week will weigh in on a proposed policy that would set guidelines for how affordable housing incentives are issued. The commission won't be voting on the more than 50-page Affordable Housing Incentive Policy next week, but it will hear a presentation on it and provide feedback to staff. According to the meeting agenda materials, the policy is meant to provide clear guidelines ...
In this week's election, the volunteer-run Perry-Lecompton Community Library took a big step toward being able to access more resources — but the leader of its board says there's still a lot of work left to do. Voters overwhelmingly said yes on Tuesday to a referendum to create a new library district for Perry and Lecompton, whose boundaries will mostly match those of the Perry-Lecompton school district. In ...
Story updated at 3:08 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 5: Lawrence residents can start purchasing recreation center memberships in less than two weeks, and the City of Lawrence will be holding information sessions later this month to answer questions about the new fees and help people sign up. The city won't start requiring membership fees for rec center access until Jan. 5, 2026, but monthly and yearly memberships will ...
To salute veterans this week, Douglas County is joining counties across the nation by lighting up its historic courthouse in green. Through Veterans Day on Nov. 11, the row of green lights will be shining outside the courthouse at 11th and Massachusetts streets, and green lights will also greet visitors at the entrance on the Massachusetts Street side. It's all part of Operation Green Light for Veterans, a ...