News and notes from around town:

• A long-awaited city audit of the Lawrence Police Department has been released. As expected, the audit makes no hard findings against the department, but instead suggests more specific police topics that could be the subject of future audits. The three highest ranking issues worthy of an audit, according to City Auditor Michael Eglinski, are:

— A review of how city leaders manage the police department’s workload.

— A look at how the police department handles and addresses complaints.

— An examination of how city management measures and reports on the performance of the police department.

City commissioners will discuss the report at their Tuesday evening meeting to determine whether to proceed with any or all of the recommended audits. Check back later for more information.

• A deteriorating vacant house at 1313 Haskell Ave. may avoid demolition for at least another 60 days. A new report from City Hall is recommending that the new owners of the property — a group led by Brook Creek neighborhood residents James Grauerholz and Michael Almon — be given 60 days to work on the home and determine the feasibility of whether it can be rehabilitated. City commissioners at their meeting on Oct. 19 were ready to order that the house be demolished, after more than five months of discussions with the property owner had not done much to improve the condition of the property. But commissioners delayed the demolition order after learning that Grauerholz’s group purchased the house earlier in the day. The house was built by one of Lawrence’s earliest settlers, Oliver Hanscom, who arrived in Lawrence as part of the second group of Lawrence settlers in 1854. City commissioners will discuss the issue Tuesday.

• A few more homes in Lawrence may have fire sprinklers in the future. City commissioners are being asked to adopt a new version of the International Fire Code. City staff is recommending that the code be adopted with the provision that all new townhomes of three or more units be constructed with fire sprinklers. Current city code does not require townhomes to be built with fire sprinklers. The new code would not require sprinklers for two-unit townhomes — often called duplexes — nor for single-family homes. Technically, the International Fire Code does call for fire sprinklers to be installed in all new single-family homes, but it gives cities the ability to exempt themselves from that part of the code. Lawrence has done that in the past, and now there is a state law that prohibits cities from requiring installation of fire sprinklers in single-family homes or duplexes.

• Lawrence and Douglas County were above average when it came to filling out U.S. Census forms. A new report from the Census found 78 percent of Douglas County households and 77 percent of Lawrence households mailed in their 2010 Census forms. That was better than the 74 percent national average and the 76 percent statewide average. Two cities in Kansas, though, were among the top 20 communities in the country for return rates. Olathe had the sixth-highest return rate in the country at 82 percent, and Overland Park had the 13th-highest rate at 81 percent. In case you are wondering, Livonia, Mich., had the highest: 88 percent.

What town talk are you hearing? Send me a tip at clawhorn@ljworld.com.